Teachers cry foul over scrapping of Anna's function

Wednesday April 27, 2011 11:36:46 AM, IANS

Lucknow: Teachers at Lucknow University Wednesday said the varsity administration's decision to cancel a function involving social activist Anna Hazare is aimed at crippling his campaign against corruption and they would seek the governor's intervention.

"We will convene a general body meeting of teachers to decide our strategy against the varsity administration, whose decision is aimed at crippling Hazare's campaign that is receiving an overwhelming response across the country," R.B. Singh, general secretary of Lucknow University Teachers Association (LUTA), told IANS.

The varsity administration Tuesday denied permission to LUTA to felicitate Hazare on the campus on the grounds that the hall where the function was to take place May 1 was too small to accommodate a big gathering.

"We will apprise the governor, who is also the university chancellor, about the undemocratic decision. There are no valid reasons for not allowing us to felicitate Hazare on the campus," Singh said.

"We are shocked and surprised by the reason given by the varsity administration for not allowing us to organise the felicitation and that too when LUTA had already deposited the money for booking the Malviya Conference Hall," said Singh.

"The university must understand that the programme planned by us was not part of any public rally, where everyone can participate. It was just a function to felicitate the Gandhian crusader," he said.

According to university spokesperson S.K. Dwivedi, the permission was denied simply because the hall is very small to accommodate a big gathering.

"The hall can accommodate 350-odd people, but we believe that the strength of the people attending the programme would be much more. The decision by the Lucknow University administration has been taken to avoid any untoward incident."

Hazare will begin a three-day tour of Uttar Pradesh from Friday. On the day he would address a public meeting in Varanasi. It would be followed by public meetings in Sultanpur April 30 and Lucknow May 1.

Hazare had held a 97-hour-long fast in the Indian capital earlier this month, forcing the government to agree to civil society involvement for a stronger anti-corruption Lokpal Bill.

                                           Home | Top of the Page

Top Stories

Kalmadi sent to eight days in police custody

It was eight more nights in a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) lockup for India's high profile MP and sports administrator Suresh Kalmadi with a court Tuesday sending him to police custody till May 4 on   »

Slipper attack on Kalmadi latest in similar assaults

Is it curtains for high-flier Kalmadi?

Suresh Kalmadi arrested by CBI

  Most Read

Bhagwan Satya Sai: Faith Marginalizes Reason

The death of Satya Sai Baba, April 24th 2011, has created a big turmoil, not only amongst his followers but also amongst those who had more mundane things to look after, like law and order, visit of VVIP’s to Puthaparthi etc. Bhajans (devotional songs) to mourn his death are being held all over  »

Sathya Sai Baba: A village boy who became demi god

UN panel finds credible 'war crimes' charges in Sri Lanka

A UN report has found credible evidence that both the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil Tigers violated human rights in the last stages of the conflict, some of it amounting to war crimes. But the report, which became public this week, is more harsh on Colombo, saying most civilian casualties »

  News Pick

Government pushes ahead with Jaitapur n-project

The government is pushing ahead with the Jaitapur nuclear power project in Maharashtra, with   »

Safety, livelihood of locals, focus of meeting on Jaitapur n-project

Ishrat Jahan case: 14 Gujarat cops now seek CBI probe

In a turnround, 14 Gujarat police officers Tuesday urged the Gujarat High Court to reconstitute its special probe team in the Ishrat Jahan staged  »

'Vibrant Gujarat' campaign holds little truth: Activist

70 hurt in Dhaka varsity shooting

Gunshots were fired in a clash at the Dhaka University campus early Tuesday as two factions of the students wing of the ruling Awami League fought pitched battles. At least 70 students were injured, 15 critically, when activists of two factions of   »

First wife dead, teenager was about to be married again

While preventing a teenaged boy from marrying a minor girl, the Rajasthan authorities stumbled upon the fact that he had already been married once earlier and his first wife had died last year. The incident in Baran district comes at    »

Parallel Pakistani education website baffles officials

Officials of Pakistan's Higher Education Commission (HEC) were left baffled when they found that a website similar to their official one has appeared out of nowhere. The HEC official website's link is www.hec.gov.pk  »

Picture of the Day

Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari with the students, at the 30th Convocation of the Institute of Rural Management, in Anand, Gujarat on April 26, 2011.

(Photo: Manoj)