Chandigarh, March 19
Making an interesting revelation, the Punjab Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, said here today that the Vice-Chancellor of Punjabi University, Mr Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia, had approached him through an emissary to personally submit his resignation and surrender before him (CM) two days ago.
“I refuse to see a person who is facing criminal charges and has damaged the image of the university beyond words. I am not in the habit of entertaining people involved in criminal cases”, Capt Amarinder Singh told the emissary.
“Tell Mr Ahluwalia to surrender before the police, which is the appropriate authority to deal with the matter”, Capt Amarinder Singh further told the emissary.
The Chief Minister said he was surprised that Mr Ahluwalia was playing hide-and-seek with the police authorities.
The government as well as people, including students, had lost faith in him (VC). Despite this, he was not submitting his resignation, Capt Amarinder Singh added.
Visibly upset over the developments in Punjabi University, especially with regard to the conduct of Mr Ahluwalia, Capt Amarinder Singh said the annual examinations were round the corner and the morale of the student community had been shattered because of the recent events on the campus. The reputation of the university had suffered a big blow, he said.
The Chancellor of the university was also feeling disturbed because of what had been happening in the university. Capt Amarinder Singh said that he had a detailed talk with the Chancellor in this connection a few days ago. What had happened in the university had not been heard of earlier anywhere in this region, the Chief Minister said.
The police had been told to pursue the criminal cases against the Vice-Chancellor to their logical conclusion.
Meanwhile, he said the necessary steps were being taken to hand over charge of the office of Vice-Chancellor to the appropriate authority.
