Show-cause notice over USA tour: PUTA writes to V-C, condemns ‘victimisation of teachers’

PUTA has written a strongly worded letter to the vice-chancellor to condemn the “victimisation of teachers by university authorities, and creation an environment of fear, intimidation and threat on the campus” after three faculty members were issued a show-cause notice over USA tour

After three Panjab University (PU) teachers were sent show-cause notices for visiting the United States of America for a project, Panjab University Teachers Association (PUTA) has written a strongly worded letter to the vice-chancellor to condemn the “victimisation of teachers by university authorities, and creation an environment of fear, intimidation and threat on the campus.”

In the letter, PUTA president Mritunjay Kumar and secretary Amarjit Singh Naura, said that the three faculty members – Sanjeev Gautam, Navdeep Goyal and Harish Kumar – were to proceed on a tour to USA in pursuit of their projects, which is ordinarily considered to be a matter of prestige for the university. (HT PHOTO )

In the letter, PUTA president Mritunjay Kumar and secretary Amarjit Singh Naura, said that the three faculty members – Sanjeev Gautam, Navdeep Goyal and Harish Kumar – were to proceed on a foreign visit in pursuit of their projects, which is ordinarily considered to be a matter of prestige for the university, especially in the wake of the forthcoming National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) visit.

They added that Naura too had been denied leave for attending an international conference on “flimsy grounds,”and asked the V-C to withdraw the notices against the three colleagues. They have also asked that an inquiry be conducted by an external agency regarding how sanctions, which were earlier granted were withdrawn on the last day without any reason or justification.