New Delhi: The indefinite strike by a section of teachers of Delhi University’s (DU) Hindu College entered its second month Wednesday. The Hindu College Staff Association (HCSA) has widened the scope of its allegations, from irregularities in Sports and Extra-Curricular Activities (ECA) admissions to financial irregularities and lack of transparency.
Alleging a shift towards “privatisation”, they are demanding a temporary DU takeover. On its part, the college administration has termed the allegations as “baseless”.
Members of HCSA began their indefinite strike on 14 September, objecting to the allocation of supernumerary (additional) seats under Sports and ECA quotas in the 2026-27 undergraduate admission cycle. They have since sought action against Principal Anju Srivastava and governing body chairman T.C.A. Rangachari, while expanding their demands to include independent scrutiny of the college’s administrative and financial affairs.
Addressing the media Wednesday, Ratan Lal, president of the HCSA, said the association faced intimidation after making public its concerns regarding admissions and other alleged irregularities.
Lal said he and two other faculty members received show-cause notices from the college’s governing council, accusing them of gross misconduct, indiscipline and insubordination amid the dispute. “We are being targeted… The administration is trying to intimidate teachers so that nobody speaks up. But we are not going to be intimidated. Our protest will continue…Hindu College is a public institution run on taxpayers’ money, but the way it is being run raises questions about privatisation,” Lal said.
HCSA secretary Shankar Kumar demanded the “unconditional” withdrawal of show-cause notices issued to him, Lal and senior faculty member P.K. Vijayan. “The show-cause notices should be withdrawn with immediate effect,” he said.
College Principal Anju Srivastava, meanwhile, denied the allegations of irregularities and privatisation, calling them “baseless”.
“The university acknowledged the error in seat allocation and regretted it. This has happened across colleges. Our Staff Council committee agreed that we should proceed with the admissions. Every list that comes from the university is accepted by all colleges,” she told ThePrint.
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Admissions dispute to faculty-admin confrontation
The row began in August, during Delhi University’s 2026-27 undergraduate admissions, when the college staff association alleged irregularities in the allocation of supernumerary seats under the Sports and ECA quotas.
Under DU rules, 5 percent of undergraduate seats are reserved for Sports and ECA admissions, with no more than 20 percent of each quota’s seats allocated to a single course. The association alleged that the seat allocation violated university rules.
DU attributed the discrepancy to an algorithmic error but maintained that admissions were merit-based.
The HCSA also questioned the college’s decision to proceed despite objections from teachers-in-charge, alleging that admissions were later ratified at a meeting that the elected Staff Council secretary had not convened.
The association also questioned why a disproportionate share of Sports and ECA quota seats had been allocated to two of the college’s most sought-after courses.
“Of the 48 seats under these quotas, 17 went to B.Com (Hons) and 15 to BA (Hons) Political Science. The distribution breached Delhi University’s rule limiting supernumerary admissions to 20 percent of seats in a single undergraduate programme,” said college staff council secretary and professor at the college, Chandrachur Singh.
The HCSA began an indefinite dharna on 14 September, demanding action over alleged admission irregularities and withdrawal of show-cause notices.
On 1 October, the HCSA submitted a memorandum to the DU Vice-Chancellor seeking intervention and an independent inquiry into alleged financial and administrative irregularities. It also demanded a temporary DU takeover, disclosure of governing body minutes, audited accounts and CAG reports, and raised concerns over the commercial use of college resources, procurement, appointments, scholarships and campus safety.
Allegations of ‘privatisation’; ‘high’ hostel fees
The association Wednesday alleged that the college was being “privatised”, citing the naming of the auditorium, research park and other infrastructure after donors, as well as a steep increase in hostel fees.
“The rent for a room in Hindu College, a public institution, is over Rs 18,000 a month, excluding food and electricity. Two students sharing a room have to pay more than Rs 9,300 each. Is this not effectively a private operation?” questioned Lal.
He alleged that private entities were gaining influence over college governance. “After around 2011-12, the intervention of corporate houses in the college began to increase,” Lal said.
Srivastava said donations to the college were being used for infrastructure, research and capacity-building, in line with the objectives of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
“Substantial grants from the UGC go towards salaries, leaving limited funds for developing facilities. We need to keep improving infrastructure for students and teachers. The donors do not expect anything in return, and all donations are governed by rules. Donor funding is also supporting scholarships, with students receiving substantial amounts, nothing has been done against the rules,” she said.
She also said that the same donor has donated for research facilities and endowment funds in other institutions and universities. “Our hostel was built on a self-financing model. If you compare the fees with those of hostels at other colleges, ours are on the lower side, despite facilities such as air-conditioning and lifts,” said Srivastava.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
Also Read: ‘Post made with intent to hurt sentiments’. Why HC rejected Hindu College prof’s plea to quash FIR
These are political activists masquerading as professors. Let’s take the example of ‘Professor’ Ratan Lal – cited in this news article.
Lal has been the subject of multiple FIRs. He never made any ripples in the academic or research community. But for sure he made waves on social media through his Hinduphobic posts. The “professor” had in May 2022 put out a derogatory and abusive post on social media on the claims of a ‘Shiva Linga’ being found at the Gyanvapi complex in Varanasi.
This is just one instance of his multi-faceted talents for rabble-rousing.
Similar is the case of the other two so called professors.
These are partisan and biased political activists who would not even have been eligible for a peon’s job. But the then UPA government made sure that they were appointed as professors.