Subramaniam Swamy sacked by Delhi IIT

 

Subramaniam Swamy

NK SINGH

The eight-month-old abrupt politicisation of the trade union activities in Delhi's prestigious Indian Institute of Technology culminated in the dismissal of Prof. Subramaniam Swamy, the leader of the workers' movement and the brain behind the rampant unrest on the campus.

Later two non-teaching employees were also suspended for allegedly indulging in acts of assault and violence. According to reliable sources, the Institute authorities are seriously considering action against two other lecturers of the Humanities and Social Sciences department for their 'unacademic' role.

The vital decision was taken given the eight-month-old turmoil in Delhi IIT, which is one of a family of five catering to the special technological needs of the country. The atmosphere of the Institute, which is supposed to be among the best in Asia, has been vitiated by demonstrations, slogan-shouting, gheraos, strikes, stray cases of assault and intimidation of individuals. 

The academic as well as administrative activities of the Institute have come to a standstill. So much so that the examinations of the Institute had to be postponed indefinitely and the students asked to go on advanced leave from November 10. Latest reports have it that despite the firm action taken by the authorities to restore normalcy in the campus the Institute is unlikely to reopen on January 2 as scheduled.

At present the campus looks like a tense battleground with a handful of slogan-shouting employees ranged against two jeepful of policemen, who have been requisitioned by the authorities to prevent any indecent incident. Two truckloads of Central Reserve Police have been posted at the outer gates.

Swamy's Dismissal

The decision to terminate the services of Prof. Subramaniam Swamy was taken after two months of hectic deliberations by the IIT Board of Governors on December 5. As soon as he was handed over the dismissal order on December 11, the agitation of the non-teaching employees was renewed with a new vigour. 

They went on a strike the very next day and brought out a procession in which effigies of the Director and the Chairman of the Board of Governors were burnt. According to the President of the IIT Employees' Union, the agitation is to continue till the sacked professor is reinstated.

The IIT teachers' union, Praudyogik Adhyapak Samiti, has condemned the action. An action committee, set up by the admirers of Prof. Swamy, has started collecting funds to help him fight his case in court. It has also sought an appointment with the IIT's Visitor, President V.V. Giri, to apprise him of the 'crisis'.

On October 13, about 800 IIT employees held a demonstration near Parliament House to demand the reinstatement of Prof. Swamy. They alleged that he had been dismissed on charges of "being sympathetic to the cause of Class III and IV employees." 

They were addressed among others by the Jana Sangh President Atal Behari Vajpayee, Swatantra Party's Piloo Mody and Socialist Party's Samar Guha, who assured all help to the employees in their struggle and alleged that Prof. Swamy was dismissed for exposing the misdeeds of certain officials in the IIT.

Prof. Swamy himself alleged that he was being harassed since a large number of questions were asked in Parliament earlier this year regarding 'financial bungling' and 'academic malpractices in the IIT, after which the Public Accounts Committee was asked to look into the Institute's affairs. At first, his probation period was extended without ascribing any reason and now he had been sacked.

The authorities described the decision of the Board of Governors, as 'painful' but added in the same breath that "the step had been taken in the best interest of IIT."

On the surface, the sole reason for the vitiated atmosphere is the IIT employees' agitation. One could understand had the employees confined their demands to their conditions of services, but for them to claim a voice in the selection and appointment of faculty members is, to say the least, fantastic nonsense.

But, then, Prof. Swamy is very much involved in the employees' agitation. To be precise, this young economist, who was teaching at Harvard before joining IIT, is not only actively associated with the Employees Union but is their leader and mentor as well. Though he has no formal connection whatsoever with the Employees' Union he regularly participates in its meetings, advises it and represents the Union in talks with the authorities. 

It was due to an agitation launched by him that the former Director of IIT, R.N. Dogra, had to resign. Another Director was appointed but he too went on 'leave' in November. Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Board of Governors was also changed and Dr. B.D. Nag Chaudhary took over. Yet another Director the third in eight months was appointed but the situation did not improve.

Is it true, as alleged, that Prof. Swamy was sacked for his trade union activities on the campus? His is not a simple case of a militant trade unionist. There is something beneath the surface. Swamy's trade unionism is inspired by his RSS and Jana Sangh politics. 

Now, it can be a matter of dispute whether an academician should indulge in party politics on campus or not, but the IIT statute clearly states:" No employee should take part in politics or be associated with any party or organisation which takes part in political activity, nor shall he subscribe to, aid or assist, in any manner, any political movement or activity....... No employee shall canvass or otherwise interfere or use his influence in connection with or take part in any election to a legislative body or local authority."  

On the contrary, 33-year-old Subramaniam Swamy is actively associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sanga and Jana Sangh. He is supposed to be the economic guide and mentor of the party whose leaders hail him as an economic genius. 

His theory of achieving a ten per cent economic growth rate by changing India's nuclear policy-known as the 'Swadeshi Plan'-has have been formally adopted by Jana Sangh. The learned professor regularly writes in RSS-JS papers. Motherland and Organiser, expounding and extolling the economic, foreign and defence policies of the Jana Sangh. 

He participates in the JS Working Committee and Council meetings in the capacity of a permanent invitee. He was reported to have drafted the party's economic resolution for its Ghaziabad session. He also campaigned for the Sangh candidates in the 1971 parliamentary and 1972 general elections during which he addressed several election meetings in Madhya Pradesh, Delhi and UP. Not only this, he is also the Sanchalak of R.K. Puram (South Delhi) shakha of the RSS.

Swamy's association with the Sangh has added a touch of extremism to the trade union activities on the campus. Due to its well-knit organisation, the small RSS group has held the entire campus to ransom. The Employees Union, led by the RSS, has been acting almost likeforce threatening all those it does not like with dire consequences.

Senior members of the faculty live in terror. They often receive 'poison' calls from anonymous callers including death and assassination threats. Recently, one of them tried to stand up to it and the next day his wife was told on the telephone that acid would be thrown at her face if she did not persuade her spouse to mend his ways. Faculty member houses are often surrounded, and abusive and filthy language is used against members of their families.

That the threats are not empty has been proved by the assault on one of the registrars in his office. Many faculty members, such as Professors Indrasen, K.K. Chopra, C.S. Jha and T.K. Ghosh, have filed written complaints against the employees union.

According to reliable sources, a voluminous file that the former Director, R.N. Dogra, had left with the Governing Body about the group of faculty members accused of indulging in 'unacademic' activities on the campus, is now missing from the records.

A petition signed by about 170 of the 200-odd faculty members, have urged 'effective action' against the trouble-makers.

New Wave 
17 December,1972