Punishing G N Saibaba

The Committee for Defence and Release of G N Saibaba condemns the arbitrary manner in which the authorities of Ram Lal Anand College are continuing to deny him the right to resume his duties as an assistant professor in the college after he has been released on unconditional bail by the Supreme Court in April 2016.

The decision to suspend him from services until the criminal case against him in Maharashtra is settled and curtail his entry to the college till further orders as well as the consideration of an “independent disciplinary proceedings are being contemplated under University Act, Ordinance and Rules for your act unbecoming of a teacher besides other misconducts noticed now” is based on the report of a one-man inquiry committee. This report has not been made available to Saibaba. It should be noted that the decision to conduct disciplinary action against him is seriously prejudicial to his defence in his criminal case, which is currently sub judice. Once he is released on bail and is fit to perform his duties, it is only a matter of routine procedure that he be allowed to join duty as his suspension was predicated on the false FIR (Crime Case No 13/2014) registered against him in Maharashtra, and has no connection whatsoever with his position as a teacher of the college. In its eagerness to “punish” and victimise him, the college authorities have violated all procedural norms. The person who conducted the inquiry has subsequently been asked to step down from the governing body, but only after his recommendation of Saibaba’s suspension was approved by the body, which had no representatives from among the teachers of the college.

The defence committee demands that the governing body of Ram Lal Anand College should immediately retract the blatanly illegal decisions made by them and reinstate G N Saibaba in his teaching position as per the central government employees rules and various judgments of the Supreme Court. We appeal to the university vice chancellor to immediately intervene and ensure that justice is meted out to Saibaba.

G Hargopal, Chairperson,