The Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers' Association (JNUTA) has intensified its protest against the university administration, alleging undue delays and arbitrary rejections in faculty promotions.
In response to the administration’s inaction, JNUTA has announced a 24-hour hunger strike tomorrow, March 27, 2025, from 11 am onwards in front of the School of Social Sciences (SSS-2) building.
Faculty promotions stalled, over 100 affected
Speaking to EdexLive, JNUTA President Moushumi Basu raised serious concerns over the university’s handling of Career Advancement Scheme (CAS) promotions, stating that more than 100 faculty members have been denied their due promotions.
“Currently, over 100 faculty members are being denied their rightful promotions, and as time passes, this number will only increase as more people become eligible,” she said.
Despite repeated assurances from the administration, there has been no significant progress on the issue.
The association first met Vice-Chancellor (VC) Prof Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit on February 25, 2025, following which they submitted a list of long-pending CAS promotions on March 7, 2025.
However, on March 10, 2025, JNUTA learned that the administration had not followed through on its commitment to reviewing rejections stemming from alleged biases in selection committees.
Protests and administration’s silence
In protest against these actions, JNUTA organised a demonstration on March 11, 2025, at SSS-2, against the alleged victimisation of faculty members.
Following this, JNUTA wrote to the VC again on March 20, 2025, requesting an urgent meeting to address delays in promotions, selective discrimination, and the unlawful extension of probation for newly appointed faculty. Despite these repeated efforts, the administration has remained unresponsive.
Basu criticised the university’s lack of urgency, stating, “We submitted a list of pending promotions to the administration last month, and they assured us they would provide an update on each case. However, no action has been taken, nor does there seem to be any urgency on their part, even though the issue has been raised in Parliament.”
“A university is defined by its faculty and students, not just its administration. Unfortunately, here, the administration wants to control everything while neglecting its responsibility to its academic community,” she added.
As part of its next course of action, JNUTA is calling upon faculty members, students, and the larger university community to support their upcoming hunger strike on March 27, 2025.
The protest aims to demand immediate action from the university administration and bring attention to the alleged unfair treatment of faculty members.
