A well-known academician and professor Radha Kumar has quit Jamia Millia Islamia alleging that the “new administration” was not working towards creating a conducive atmosphere for academics. Earlier two other teachers have left the university on similar grounds.
It is to be noted that after former vice-chancellor Mushirul Hasan left the university over a year ago, former bureaucrat Najeeb Jung had taken over in September 2009. Ms Kumar was the director of the Nelson Mandela Centre for Peace and Conflict Resolution at the Jamia University and a trustee of the Delhi Policy Group, an independent think tank.
In her resignation letter addressed to the vice-chancellor she alleged that the administration is acting against the academic growth of the centre. The Asian Age has a copy of her resignation.
“Our academic autonomy has been curtailed. Our partnerships with the Delhi Policy Group and the UN Institute for Training and Research have been dishonoured. And we have been demoted from being part of the social science faculty to being under an institute,” wrote Prof. Radha Kumar in her resignation letter.
“We had reached a threshold where we would have to expand in order to fulfil our potential. But we have not received support from the university to expand. Our faculty remains tiny and we have little administrative support,” she blamed.
Over six months ago, Prof. Laxmi Subramaniam of Centre for Studies of Social Sciences and head of women studies Prof. Jankirajan left the university on similar grounds. The vice-chancellor refused to comment on the matter. Prof. Kumar joined the university six years ago.