SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, May 2: Five day-old notification of Binod Bihari Mahto Koylanchal University (BBMKU) for PhD Cell has snowballed into a controversy. One of the members of Cell has resigned citing a ‘conflict of interest.’
Dr Himanshu Shekhar Choudhary, one of the five members, has resigned saying that since his wife is doing PhD in history, his continuation in the Cell is against standard norms of ‘Conflict of Interest.’
“Since my wife is doing a PhD, I do not fulfil the eligibility criteria required for the membership. So I am resigning,” he said in the letter to registrar Vikash Kumar.
The resignation of Dr Choudhary has put the coordinator of PhD Cell Dr Krishna Murari Singh in the dock as his wife and daughter both are doing PhD. While his wife is reportedly doing PhD in ‘Home Science’, his daughter is pursuing her PhD in English.
Senior teachers of BBMKU have raised their voices against the Cell saying that only a neutral person could be a member of the committee to avoid the conflict of interest doctrine. “How a member will be neutral when his relative is doing PhD from the university,” they said.
The teachers said the notification for PhD Cell of the university is at the centre of controversy right from the day it was issued.
Registrar Vikash Kumar issued notification for a four-member PhD Cell comprising Dr Krishna Murari Singh (coordinator), Dr Jay Gopal Mandal, Dr Sarita Murmu and Dr Munmun Sharan on April 26.
But two days later, on April 28, the registrar issued a revised notification for the five-member Cell.
The names of Dr Jay Gopal Mandal (2008 batch), university department of Bangla language and Dr Munmun Sharan, university department of economics were removed in the revised notification.
Three other members Dr Leelawati Kumari (1996 batch), university head of the department chemistry and Dr Himanshu Shekhar Choudhary ( 2008 batch), university head of department English and Dr Mukund Ravidas (2008 batch) were included in the Cell.
The teachers of the university have resented the ignorance of teachers’ seniority in the Cell. They say Dr Leelawati (1996 batch) is the senior-most among other members of the cell but her name is at bottom of the list. Other members are the 2008 batch.
“Either she should have been appointed as coordinator or she should not have been placed under a junior. It is nothing but humiliation for senior teachers,” said the teachers of the university.
Senior teachers alleged that it looks like this type of notification is being issued by university authorities without taking the nod of vice-chancellor (V-C) Dr Mukul Narayan Dev. “The VC would have never allowed such irregularities.”
