SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, Oct 31: The process to hold elections for the Binod Bihari Mahto Koylanchal University (BBMKU) Teachers Association has plunged into limbo again.
The seven-member election committee, which was announced under retired dean Dr SKL Das on September 21, has not held a meeting even after 40 days of formation so far. The meeting does not look possible shortly due to developments in the university.
An electoral list of teachers has been prepared. A total of 173 teachers of Dhanbad- Bokaro-based 10 constituent colleges and postgraduate departments were found eligible voters, but the further process of election is held up.
When contacted, chief election officer Dr SKL Das said that he was in Delhi and would return to Dhanbad on November 5. Thereafter, he would consult the committee members to start the process, he added.
The coordinator of the election committee, Dr KM Singh (PG English department), when contacted, said that he would comment on the election only after talking with the chief election officer (Dr SKL Das).
The first election of BBMKUTA was held in 2018 and the second election has been pending since 2021.
Taking the BBMKUTA election seriously, secretaries of both teachers’ bodies Dr Himanshu Shekhar Choudhary and Dr BN Singh mended their fence and jointly formed a seven-member committee on September 21 to hold the election as soon as possible.
The committee members are Dr SKL Das (chief election officer), Dr RS Yadav (deputy chief election officer), Dr SK Sinha, Dr OP Sinha, Dr Uma Mangeswary, Dr DN Singh and Dr KM Singh (coordinator).
A senior teacher of the university said that as of now the election does not look possible before December as the Chhath festival will conclude on November 20. Thereafter, the election committee will be able to hold a meeting to decide the dates for nomination as well as voting and counting. “You will have to give at least 15 days to candidates for preparation. So, the election is not possible before December,” said the teacher.
However, another senior teacher of the post-graduate department said that the sudden development in the university (the sacking of vice-chancellor Dr Sukhdeo Bhoi by the Chancellor on October 13), the teachers’ body election had to be extended. “ The election will be held 100% this year,” said the teacher.
A delay in the BBMKU TA poll would also hit the election of the Federation of Universities Teachers’ Association of Jharkhand (FUTAJ). BBMKUTA general secretary Prof Choudhary had assured to host the state body election.
