JNU Teachers Embark on "Month of Protests" on Account of Promotions, Faculty Harassment

The Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers' Association (JNUTA) yesterday began a "Month of Protests" on May 8, 2025, protesting against what it refers to as the authoritarian mode of functioning of the university administration and the "systematic harassment" of the faculty members.

In a blistering statement issued on Wednesday, May 7, JNUTA accused Vice-Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit and the JNU administration of making use of teacher promotions and confirmations under the Career Advancement Scheme (CAS) as "tools for victimisation."

The union accused that several promotions have been pending for months, some were unfairly rejected, and some professors have been illegally put on probation extension — steps JNUTA called "humiliating" and devoid of professional merit.

"These are not comments on the competence of the faculty involved. They are symptoms of the malaise which has infested JNU, where academic health, gender justice, and social equity are clearly not priorities of the administration," the statement added.

The demonstrations kicked off with a delegation in mass to the Dean of School of Language, Literature, and Cultural Studies (SLL&CS) yesterday. Demonstrations will continue in ensuing weeks within other schools including Social Sciences, International Studies, Life Sciences, Computer and Systems Sciences, and Biotechnology.

JNUTA also protested the deans' role, on the grounds that their involvement in selection committees, the Executive Council, and confirmation processes renders them guilty of faculty victimisation — actively or otherwise.

The association also noted administrative indolence, like the fact that the Board of Studies at the School of Social Sciences has not convened for over two and a half years, resulting in refusals for promotion to three "highly deserving" scholars.

As part of the ongoing campaign, JNUTA is going to take up persuasion with the Internal Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC) Chairperson, the registrar, and finally the vice-chancellor.

The teachers' association asked the university to talk and threatened that it is prepared to raise the protests to another level if the administration fails to respond.