Atishi, the Higher Education Minister, has initiated an investigation into significant procedural irregularities surrounding the unauthorized appointments by DU colleges of 1,897 personnel across 12 Delhi University colleges supported by the Delhi government. In a communication to Alice Vaz R., the Secretary of Higher Education, Atishi highlighted that the appointments for 939 teaching and 958 non-teaching positions occurred without the requisite approval from the Delhi government.
Atishi has instructed the Secretary to identify the responsible principals and officials, urging strong punitive measures against them. This includes the recovery of salaries disbursed to these “illegal staff” which were unauthorized appointments by DU colleges dating back to 2015. The Minister emphasized that as these colleges are financially supported by the public exchequer, they must be answerable for any misappropriation of funds.
The Report of 2020 About Unauthorized Appointments by DU Colleges
In 2020, a report from the Delhi government’s Directorate of Audit, which included a special audit of six out of the 12 colleges under scrutiny, uncovered numerous instances of “serious irregularities and procedural lapses” committed by these institutions.
Ms. Atishi, about the audit findings, pointed out that these colleges failed to submit the required action-taken reports. Surprisingly, neither the university nor any of the colleges involved issued a response to this development.
Taking proactive measures, Ms Atishi wrote to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan the previous month, highlighting the alleged irregularities in these 12 colleges. She presented two options: either the Delhi government takes over these institutes or the central government assumes control, including funding responsibilities.
The Aam Aadmi Party government asserted that starting from the financial year 2024-25, it would withhold grant-in-aid if these colleges remained affiliated with Delhi University. In response, the university’s Executive Council established a committee to investigate the matter, and the awaited report will shed light on the situation.
DU VC Requested to Withdraw The Letter
Vice-Chancellor Yogesh Singh of Delhi University encouraged Ms Atishi to rethink her message to Mr Pradhan in a recent correspondence. The letter in question discussed the possible disaffiliation of 12 Delhi University Colleges. Mr. Singh claims that these institutions, which were founded between 1986 and 1998, have had a continuous grant-making relationship with the university for a long time.
The Vice-Chancellor voiced worries that these institutions’ general learning environments would suffer as a result of the planned de-affiliation. Mr Singh requested the Higher Education Minister to maintain the current affiliations to create an environment that is favourable and supportive of learning.
