Kolkata: IIT Teachers' Association (IITTA) on Tuesday wrote to the board of governors chairman, T V Narendran, urging him to step in as the IIT director did not agree to their demands of withdrawing show-cause notice to 86 professors or stopping disciplinary actions against IITTA office-bearers and the general secretary. The teachers' body asked Narendran to intervene to "restore the confidence in them so that the academic excellence would be maintained and the atmosphere of intimidation should not prevail".
A statement from IIT-Kgp read, "... the intent of action of these 85 signatories are questioned in mobilizing a mass representation to threaten the administration, propagating a collective hateful purpose and disrupting the normal academic workflow... The stakeholders had a positive dialogue with IITTA office-bearers after which they were granted a relaxation till Dec 13, as requested... The director advised them not to malign the reputation of the Institute of Eminence"
"The BoG chairman had intervened and sent an email on Monday, following which the office-bearers were called for a meeting with the director. But he did not agree to our requests of withdrawal of show-cause and disciplinary proceedings," said an IITTA member.
Trinamool RS member Samirul Islam wrote to Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, saying, "The episode appears undemocratic and an infringement on the rights of citizens."