In the Delhi University Teachers’ Association (DUTA) election, a candidate of the RSS-affiliated National Democratic Teachers’ Front (NDTF) has been elected to the post of president of the DUTA for the first time after 24 years. Dr AK Bhagi of NDTF is a professor at Dyal Singh College, University of Delhi won the post, defeating Abha Dev Habib of the Left-affiliated Democratic Teachers’ Front (DTF), by a margin of 1,382 votes. While Bhagi got 3,584 votes, Abha Dev Habib got 2,202 votes.
Terming it a significant win for NDTF, Bhagi said the previous leadership (by Left) had created a negative environment by sidelining the issues of teachers and focusing on issues in national politics.
He targetted the Congress-backed INTEC (Indian National Teachers Congress) and the AAD (Academics for Action and Development) for their dismal performance.
When asked about how Leftists ideology supported by both Congress and Aam Aadmi Party has crippled the education sector for their petty politics, Dr Bhagi mentioned that the Left lacks the ability to research, comprehend, or debate any issue openly and how badly it has affected the system.
“AAP government is attempting to split Delhi University. It intends to separate the Delhi University’s College of Arts and link it to Ambedkar University. The teachers at Delhi University have rejected this coup to break the university because this isn’t his first time doing something like this.”
Dr. Bhagi also pulled up leftists who are trying to portray NDTF as a fascist section stating, “They demonstrate in society that leftists follow Western ideology while claiming to be tolerant… (their) extremist mentality can be understood simply by analyzing how willingly they protest against their own country in order to make their point.”
Outlining some of the other key areas that DUTA will focus on, Bhagi said that DUTA’s immediate emphasis will be on the regularisation/absorption of existing ad hoc teachers through legally tenable processes. Further, the teachers’ body will also focus on the payment of regular salaries, pensions, allowances, and arrears to the teachers and employees of 12 fully-funded Delhi government colleges that are part of DU.
“The AAP government has reduced the salaries, funds, and grants of these colleges drastically. Not only this but there are delays in the disbursement of the salaries of the professors teaching here. All these issues have enraged the Delhi University professors.”
