Jadavpur University panel to probe allegations of semester exam harassment complaint
Telegraph | 30 December 2025
Jadavpur University on Monday constituted a three-member fact-finding committee to probe allegations that two undergraduate students from a particular community were harassed during their semester exams.
A press release signed by the university’s acting registrar stated that the university had taken “serious note” of the allegation and had therefore set up the committee.
The panel will consist of Syed Tanveer Nasreen, a teacher at Burdwan University; Subarna Kumar Das, a JU faculty member; and Kazi Masum Akhter, a member of the university’s executive council. The committee has been asked to submit its report within 30 days.
A section of students in JU’s English department had submitted a written complaint to the vice-chancellor, saying that the students were singled out and harassed in the name of strict invigilation during the third-semester exams in the third week of December.
Vice-chancellor Chiranjib Bhattacharjee had earlier confirmed receipt of the complaint and said a panel would be constituted to probe the matter.
A professor from the English department said that teachers were instructed by the university to carry out stringent checks to ensure that no student entered the exam hall with mobile phones or other electronic devices.
“In my report to the VC and pro-VC on Monday, I clearly explained that there was no question of singling out or harassing students of any community. The students consented to the checks, which were carried out in a separate room designated for the scholars. I also apologised to them before proceeding. So the question of hurting any religious or other sentiment simply does not arise,” said Saswati Halder, head of JU’s English department.
The announcement of the fact-finding committee comes a day before a full bench of the West Bengal Minority Commission, which took suo motu cognisance of the allegations, is scheduled to visit JU. “The bench will include the commission’s chairman and secretary. After speaking to the university administration, the commission might visit the department to speak to the students and teachers,” said acting registrar Selim Box Mandal.