Jailed Scholar GN Saibaba Removed From His Asst Prof Post at DU

Saibaba is a wheelchair-bound, 90 percent physically disabled scholar-activist who would teach English at DU.

GN Saibaba. Image used for representation.

(Photo: IANS)

Delhi University’s Ram Lal Anand College has removed scholar-activist GN Saibaba from his assistant professor post. His 22-year-old daughter Manjeera confirmed the development and said that the family received his termination letter on Thursday, 1 April, Scroll reported.

Saibaba was sentenced to life for his alleged connections with Maoists in 2017, and has been in the Nagpur Central Jail ever since. On 13 February, he had tested positive for COVID.

He is a wheelchair-bound, 90 percent physically disabled scholar-activist, whose release, based on medical grounds, has been demanded by several human rights groups, civil society organisations, and international academic associations.

Saibaba would teach English at Ram Lal Anand College until his arrest in 2014. A one-member committee was formed by the college to look into the matter of his suspension.

What the Family Says:

The letter terminated Saibaba’s services with immediate effect from 31 March. His daughter said that the letter did not carry any supporting documents providing a reason for Saibaba’s termination. She further said that the termination would be challenged in court. Three months’ salary has been credited to Saibaba’s account as per the letter.

Manjeera said that the disciplinary proceedings initiated at the time of Saibaba’s arrest said that he violated terms of services, as he was not present in college to teach.

His daughter asserted that though their lawyer was in touch with the committee, the family did not receive some documents that they had demanded. She further said that Saibaba was involuntarily not going, which is why the committee’s reasoning cannot be used.

“All of a sudden, we got this new termination notice,” Manjeera told Scroll. Since this would end Saibaba’s salary, the family will be in a harsher situation. “It is a matter of our sustenance now,” his daughter said.

Consistent demands for providing appropriate medical care to Saibaba’s ailments or allowing him bail, considering his grave condition, have not seen any realisation in the past five years.

(With inputs from Scroll.in)