Jalpaiguri college crisis

TT, Jalpaiguri: The district administration of Jalpaiguri is in double trouble as two technical institutions located on the outskirts of Jalpaiguri town have closed down.

While the strike by students is going on at Jalpaiguri Government Engineering College (JGEC) - it reached the seventeenth day on Saturday - students of Government Polytechnic have closed down the institution on Saturday, alleging molestation of a first year student by a teacher working on contract and demanding his removal.

At JGEC, one of the top technical colleges of north Bengal, students are into strike demanding removal of a faculty member who is accused of assaulting two second-year students.

On Saturday, a group of faculty members, along with other employees, organised a sit-in.

During the strike, the agitating students had written to state education minister Partha Chatterjee, mentioning that they don't want Dipak Kumar Kole, a faculty member at the college.

They have also demanded that police cases, filed against some of them for ragging junior students and for damaging the college's property during the ongoing agitation, be withdrawn.

The administration and the state have not directly responded to their demands but a team has been formed, with the director of technical education of the state Amalendu Basu as the head, to conduct an inquiry of the entire issue.

On Sunday, the team will arrive here. It has been also decided that the team will speak with 10 students of each year, starting from first year to fourth year.

The hearing would be conducted at the circuit house, Amitava Roy, the college principal said.

The agitating students however, said that unless they get a written communication, they will not turn up before the inquiry team.

At the government polytechnic, situation heated up on Thursday evening, after a first year student alleged that Jyotirmoy Roy, a contractual teacher, has molested her during her viva voce at a workshop of the institution.

The college authorities however, are silent. Pujan Sarkar, the polytechnic's principal said they have informed senior officials at the technical education department.

"A case has been registered. Out officers are investigating it," said Biswasroy Sarkar, inspector-in-charge, Kotwali police station.