Casteist harassment: 7 members resign at Bengal Uni

Seven faculty members of the Rabindra Bharati University (RBU) have tendered their resignation following alleged casteist remarks and harassment of a woman professor by the Trinamool Chattra Praishad (TMCP), the students’ wing of the Trinamool Congress.

The incident has sparked state-wide outrage, which prompted the state Education Minister Partha Chatterjee to rush to the University on Tuesday. However, the resignation letters of the concerned faculty members are yet to be accepted. The TMCP leadership has denied the allegation.

According to sources in RBU, a female faculty member of the Geography Department was being harassed with casteist remarks by TMCP members since late May. When some other faculty members protested against it, they were gheraoed by TMCP members for five hours on Thursday, following which seven of them decided to resign.

Sources further revealed that four heads of departments and directors of three centres have resigned.

“When we protested against it (the casteist remarks) we were kept gheraoed for about five hours last Thursday as a result of which we have decided to tender our resignation. Four Departmental Heads and Directors of three centres have resigned,” an RBU official said.

According to the Vice Chancellor of RBU, Sabyasachi Basu Ray Chaudhury, the concerned faculty member of the Geography Department sent a complaint to him through email. A fact-finding committee has been formed on the basis of her complaint and investigation is going on.

“The report has been submitted to the Executive Council and investigation has already started. It is an unprecedented incident in any educational institution especially one with which the name of Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore is involved. If anyone is found guilty in the investigation action will be taken against them,” stated Chaudhury.

“I request those who have tended their resignation to withdraw them. If anyone is found guilty they will not be spared,” Chatterjee said.