Shillong: Meghalaya Governor and North Eastern Hill University (NEHU) Chief Rector, Chandrashekhar H. Vijayashankar, has appealed to the NEHU Students’ Union (NEHUSU) to end their indefinite hunger strike, which has entered its fourth day.
Vijayashankar assured the students of his commitment to resolving the ongoing issues at the university. He urged them to engage in constructive dialogue with the university authorities to find amicable solutions.
Vijayashankar made this assurance after meeting with members of the North Eastern Hill University Teachers’ Association (NEHUTA) and the Meghalaya Tribal Teachers’ Association (MeTTA-NEHU) at Raj Bhavan on Friday.
President of the North Eastern Hill University Teachers’ Association (NEHUTA), Prof. Lakhon Kma said the association held a meeting with Governor Vijayashankar and briefed him about the ongoing situation.
The Governor also directed all stakeholders, including faculty and staff, to submit suggestions for resolving the ongoing crisis at the university.
Vijayashankar also assured the NEHU teachers of his commitment to facilitating further discussions with various stakeholders, including the Vice-Chancellor and state authorities, to prioritize and resolve the issues.
“As the Chief Rector of NEHU, the Governor assured that he would provide all necessary support to resolve the matter as soon as possible and to uphold the prestige of this esteemed institution,” a Raj Bhavan statement said.
Notably, at least five students, including one female student, who began an indefinite hunger strike on Tuesday outside the office of NEHU Vice Chancellor Prabha Shankar Shukla, have been hospitalized. Two of the students, who were discharged from Civil Hospital, Shillong on Friday, have resumed their protest.
The NEHUSU launched an indefinite hunger strike to pressure Vice Chancellor Prabha Shankar Shukla to resign and demand the removal of four university officials, accusing them of improper appointments and inefficiency.
Meanwhile, BJP legislator and Cabinet Minister Alexander Laloo Hek has written to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and sought his intervention to resolve the crisis.
Hek attached a letter from the MeTTA-NEHU, which was addressed to the National Commission for Scheduled Tribe, in which it was alleged that Vice Chancellor Prabha Shankar Shukla’s attitude is “anti-tribal and anti-local.”
ALSO READ: Union Home Secretary reviews progress on Assam’s border dispute pacts with Meghalaya, Arunachal
Besides, Voice of the People Party (VPP) Lok Sabha MP Dr. Ricky A J Syngkon has also written to the Union Education Minister to take immediate steps to restore the stature of NEHU, one of the premier central universities in the country.
