Tezpur University students seek Centre’s intervention, demand probe report to be made public
Guwahati, Sep 11 (IANS) Students and research scholars of Tezpur University have sought the intervention of the Union Ministry of Education over the alleged delay in making public the findings of a statutory enquiry into the affairs of the central university, officials said on Friday.
The students have urged the university Registrar to forward their representation to the Secretary of the Ministry of Education and the Additional Secretary, Department of Higher Education, seeking a transparent and time-bound resolution of the matter.
The representation relates to a statutory enquiry constituted under Section 9 of the Tezpur University Act, 1993, and includes concerns relating to the tenure of former Vice-Chancellor Prof Shambhu Nath Singh, whom the students have described as “absconding”.
According to the representation, the enquiry committee was constituted on December 31, 2025, and was required to submit its report by March 31, 2026. The students said the committee has completed its proceedings and submitted its report, but its findings and any consequential decisions have not yet been made public.
The students have also flagged a range of unresolved issues concerning the university, including student welfare, shortage of funds, prolonged administrative uncertainty and the delay in conducting the convocation for the 2025 graduating batch.
They have questioned whether the prolonged delay in resolving these issues amounts to retaliation against stakeholders who had raised allegations of corruption.
The students have demanded disclosure of the enquiry findings, clarity on action taken against the former Vice-Chancellor, fixing of responsibility wherever wrongdoing is established, release of pending funds and resolution of the delayed convocation.
They have also sought a written acknowledgement and response from the Union Ministry of Education. The students warned that failure to provide meaningful communication could lead to an escalation of their protest, including a complete shutdown of university functioning.
They further said stakeholders could make public documents and evidence submitted before various fact-finding and enquiry committees if their concerns remain unaddressed.
The representation also referred to a Citizens’ Convention held in Guwahati in December 2025, where stakeholders had discussed the possibility of constituting an independent public enquiry committee comprising educationists, RTI activists, human rights defenders, retired university faculty and retired High Court judges.
The students said their demands were aimed at restoring transparency, institutional accountability and trust in the university administration.
The statutory enquiry was essentially triggered by the prolonged crisis at Tezpur University and allegations against then Vice-Chancellor Prof Shambhu Nath Singh, including alleged financial and administrative irregularities, administrative breakdown, academic concerns and his prolonged absence from the campus.
Student and faculty protests had intensified from September 2025, eventually leading the Centre to intervene. The Ministry of Education constituted a three-member enquiry panel on December 31, 2025, while directing Singh to proceed on leave and recuse himself from all duties until the enquiry was completed.
The panel, headed by Manipur University VC Prof N. Lokendra Singh, with Nagaland University VC Prof Jagadish Kumar Patnaik and UGC Secretary Prof Manish R. Joshi as members, was tasked with examining “all matters pertaining to the ongoing situation” at the university, including allegations against the VC.
This followed an earlier fact-finding exercise ordered by the Assam Governor, who is the university’s Chancellor, in October 2025.
–IANS
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