The Assam government will hear the complaint lodged by IIT Guwahati faculty Brijesh Kumar Rai against its director T.G. Sitharam for illegally blocking his official email account after Rai sent an email to the President’s Secretariat on January 20.

The government, in a letter written to and released by Rai on Tuesday, said, “A hearing has been fixed on the matter relating to the complaint against T.G. Sitharam, director IIT Guwahati, for illegally locking Rai’s official email account.” The hearing will be held on Thursday at 3pm.

Rai, who was asked to go on “a compulsory retirement” and “vacate his quarters” by January 31 by the IIT-G board of governor on grounds of alleged misconduct, filed a petition in Gauhati High Court challenging the order. The first court hearing was held on Tuesday and the next will also be on Thursday.

“I am writing to you with complaint against Prof. T.G. Sitharam, the director of IIT Guwahati. To harass me, Sitharam has illegally locked my official email account. I receive important emails on my official email account. I have given my official email id to banks, to the publishing houses. Many students have given my official email ids to their possible employers for recommendation. By illegally locking my official email account, not only I am severely harmed but many students are also harmed,” Rai said in the letter to President Ram Nath Kovind.

“This is the first time, there is some initiation on my complaint to the President. I believe it is all because of media, well-wishers, students who have been supporting me and those who have been tweeting for me. It has created a lot of inconvenience and loss to me and also loss to the students. In spite of facing harassment, I have brought the issue of corruption in IITs in public,” Rai told The Telegraph.

Earlier, the IIT Guwahati board of governors had decided to compulsorily retire Rai instead of dismissing him from service.

IIT-G said several disciplinary proceedings had been initiated against Rai, an assistant professor in the department of electrical and electronics engineering, IIT Guwahati, on charges of multiple disciplinary violations since 2017.