The Bengal BJP on Tuesday organised a three-hour workshop for around 450 newly appointed presidents of college governing bodies, with the party and state government stressing the need to keep campuses free from political interference, financial irregularities and unauthorised appointments.
Most of the newly appointed governing body presidents are local BJP MLAs, ministers and senior party leaders. The participants were given a printed set of guidelines outlining the responsibilities and restrictions associated with running colleges.
The session was led by Bengal BJP minder Sunil Bansal, state BJP president Samik Bhattacharya, higher education minister Jagannath Chatterjee and party general secretary (organisation) Amitava Chakraborty.
Chatterjee said the workshop was aimed at familiarising the new office-bearers with their responsibilities. “Many of them are new to the role, so they were briefed on what they should and should not do,” he said.
He added that the government wanted colleges to function without political interference. “Our expectations can be achieved only if the colleges are run smoothly without political interference,” Chatterjee said, adding that the government expected improvements in teaching, learning and the overall academic environment over the next two years.
Guidelines on appointments, finances
The governing body heads were instructed to hold meetings regularly, maintain proper records and ensure that agendas and minutes were documented. They were also told not to issue blank cheques and to complete annual budgets, audits and provident fund-related work on time.
The guidelines also bar permanent appointments of teachers without recommendations from the College Service Commission. Governing bodies have additionally been asked to ensure timely processing of promotions, leave, pensions and gratuity.
The BJP also instructed the newly appointed presidents to avoid unilateral decisions, illegal appointments, financial irregularities, favouritism and discrimination, while ensuring transparency and avoiding conflicts of interest. Student welfare, hostels, health, sports and campus discipline were also listed among their responsibilities.
BJP invokes allegations against previous regime
The workshop comes against the backdrop of allegations levelled by the BJP during the previous Trinamool Congress government over political influence and alleged financial irregularities in colleges.
A senior BJP leader who attended the meeting said the party did not want a repetition of what it described as the problems of the earlier regime. “The new presidents have been strictly told to refrain from politicising the campuses,” the leader said.
Another BJP leader said the new office-bearers had been specifically instructed against illegal appointments and unauthorised control of campuses. “We want to be careful from Day One. We don’t want any repetition of the TMC-era misdeeds,” the leader said.
The same leader added that the party and government would monitor the performance of the governing body presidents and that action could follow if rules were violated or misconduct established.
The BJP government had earlier appointed party leaders and party-linked teachers to governing bodies of aided colleges. A Telegraph report published last week noted that BJP leaders had previously criticised the Trinamool Congress for alleged political influence over college governing bodies, while the latest appointments have drawn comparisons from some college principals.
