BEd varsity resumes operations: Institute reopened with support from police, says VC

A state-aided university affiliating the private BEd colleges, which last Thursday had announced suspension of “normal operations” following a “serious threat” received from some persons connected to the private BEd and MEd colleges, resumed operations on Monday “with support from administration and police”.

Baba Saheb Ambedkar Education University resumed operations after education minister Bratya Basu on Friday said the state government did not support suspending operations and would take legal opinion on the issue if need be.

The state-aided university, which affiliates about 600 private BEd colleges, had been facing protests after the authorities on November 10 withdrew affiliation to 253 BEd colleges and barred them from enrolling students on grounds of not complying with NCTE guidelines.

On Monday, the two nominees of the higher education department to the university’s court and executive council went to the campus on Ballygunge Circular Road seeking to know from the authorities why they suspended operations without holding any discussion at the executive council.

A notice signed by the university’s registrar, Maitrayee Bhattacharya, issued on Monday said: “With support from Administration and Police, the University is opened”.

When Metro asked VC Soma Bandyopadhyay whether the criticism from the education minister prompted them to reopen the university, she said: “In our previous notice on November 29 we announced the normal operations of the university would remain suspended till normalization of the current situation with cooperation of administration. After we wrote to the state administration, police were deployed outside the campus from Thursday. We opened the university with support from the administration and police”.

While saying the department would seek legal opinion on the suspension of operations, minister Basu on Friday had said: “If I cannot run my department properly, I cannot lock the office. In that case, it is better to step down. If you are facing difficulty, you should apprise the department.”

On Thursday, Bandyopadhyay had said they were receiving threats from a section of the private college heads. They assembled and threatened to ransack the university in protest, she said.

Manojit Mandal, a JU professor who is the department’s nominee to the BEd university’s court, said: “Why did the university decide on de-affiliation without any discussion at the executive council? The decision on suspending normal operations should have
also been discussed at the council.”

On Monday, Bandyopadhyay said there was no need to convene a meeting of the council immediately for complying with a Supreme Court order.

“The decision can be reported at an EC meeting later. We suspended normal operations keeping in mind the loss of property belonging to the state,” she said.