The Leader of the Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Vijender Gupta, on Monday expressed concern over the step-motherly treatment meted out by the Kejriwal government to the 12 Delhi University (DU) colleges funded by it, and alleged that due to insufficient funding from the state government, the teaching and non-teaching staff of these colleges have not received their salaries.

Gupta said that the teachers and staff of these 12 colleges were reeling under severe financial crisis due to the situation.

A delegation from the Delhi University Teachers Association (DUTA), led by their president Professor Ajay Bhagi, met Gupta on Monday and submitted a memorandum.

The delegation informed the Leader of Opposition that the 12 colleges were not receiving funds from the Delhi government, resulting in non-payment of salaries to the teaching and non-teaching staff, putting them under severe financial stress.

They also highlighted that due to the lack of funds, staff members were not receiving payments for medical bills, LTC, and other arrears due after their promotions.

The BJP leader mentioned that a DUTA delegation had also met Delhi Education Minister Atishi, and informed her of these issues, however the minister, instead accused these colleges of significant financial irregularities, stating that this was the reason for the lack of funds, Gupta claimed.

To verify the validity of the minister’s allegations, the Executive Council of Delhi University held a meeting on 15 December 2023, and formed a committee headed by South Campus Director, Professor Prakash Singh, to investigate these allegations, the BJP leader said.

The committee interacted with the principals of these colleges and other stakeholders, including DUPA, DUTA, DUCKU, and DUSU, and found that all the allegations made by the minister were baseless, said the leader of opposition.

On 22 August, the Executive Council and Academic Council of Delhi University held a meeting to approve the committee’s report, which concluded that all of Atishi’s allegations were baseless.

Gupta further stated that due to the lack of funds, permanent appointments were not being made in these colleges, arrears owed to employees as per the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission not being paid, and necessary infrastructure also was not being built.

He alleged that basic maintenance of cleanliness, labs, classrooms, clean water supply, auditoriums, seminar halls, and gardens has been severely affected in these institutions due to lack of funds.

According to Gupta, these colleges were forced to operate from their temporary school buildings, which could collapse at any time.