M A I L B A G

Between progress and peace of mind

THIS refers to Mr M.S.N. Menon’s article “West has no answers to our problems” (August 25). The essence of his argument is that India should choose the moral instead of the militarist, the decentralised instead of the centralised path. Obviously, the Westminster form of democracy is not suitable for India because of the diverse cultures and interests of people; this requires coalition governments that can accommodate regional and religious aspirations.

To a great extent, the Indian path of democracy should be the one advocated by Gandhiji in which every village could choose its own model of development through the panchayati raj system. The failure of the Emergency to give a better system proves that India’s path, as Mr Menon says, is “freedom to think and say what we believe in”.

It is wrong to think that modernisation is incompatible with Gandhism. In fact, the computer is as good a symbol of decentralisation as the Charkha, enabling people to work from their homes. It enables a typist from his/her home in a Kerala village to do medical transcription for a doctor in California.

N. KUNJU
Delhi

Upgradation of RECs

This refers to the news report (The Tribune, August 10) that the Central government has decided to upgrade 17 Regional Engineering Colleges in the country. The RECs would be renamed as National Institute of Engineering and Technology.

One hopes the upgradation would not begin and end with the high-sounding name only. It will have to be much more than mere cosmetic changes. A suitable revision of the syllabus and the course content, updating of research facilities and the infrastructure and adoption of ultra-modern teaching techniques are some of the essential ingredients of upgradation. One hopes these would be undertaken in the right earnest.

The engineers passing out from the IITs are awarded a B. Tech. degree while those graduating from other engineering colleges receive a B.E. degree. Obviously, the newly upgraded institutes will also offer a B. Tech to their students. These institutes should live up to this responsibility. Their products should be as much sought after as B.Tech holders from the IITs.

Wg Cdr C.L. SEHGAL (retd)
Jalandhar 

DAV Colleges

This refers to the write-up “DAV Colleges above the law?”, published in The Tribune on July 10. The article in question is fallacious in argument. The facts of the case are as under:

Before 1996 Section 2(e) of the Haryana Affiliated Colleges Security of Service Act, 1979, read: “Managing committee means the managing committee of an affiliated college and includes a person or body of persons for the time being entrusted with the management of the affairs of such college.” It created many difficulties and complications for managing committees like the DAV College Managing Committee which were looking after more than one college. In order to help out such managing committees, the above cited Section 2 (e) of the Act was amended by the legislature of Haryana in 1995. This amendment of the Haryana Affiliated Colleges Security of Service Act received the assent of the Governor on April 28, 1995. The notification to this effect was issued on January 5, 1996, as under:

For Clause (e) of Section 2 of the Haryana Affiliated Colleges (Security of Service) Act, 1979, the following clause shall be substituted, namely:

(e) “Managing committee means the managing committee of an affiliated college or colleges and includes a person or body of persons for the time being entrusted with the management of the affairs of such college or colleges.”

In accordance with the above amendment where a society or a trust was running more than one college, such society or trust as the case may be could constitute one managing committee for all its colleges.

The amendment rendered it unnecessary to have a separate governing body for each college.

Nevertheless, to seek further clarifications so as to pre-empt any later day problem, the Vice-President, Organising Secretary and some Principals of DAV Colleges had a meeting with the Financial Commissioner and Secretary, Education, Haryana, on October 9, 1996. The meeting was also attended by the Director, Higher Education, Haryana, Joint Director and Deputy Directors, Colleges; the Registrar, MD University, Rohtak, and the Dean of Colleges, Kurukshetra University.

At this meeting, the DAV College Managing Committee was accordingly allowed to constitute one managing committee (also known as governing body) for all DAV Colleges in Haryana as per the amended Act and norms laid down in the Kurukshetra University, Maharshi Dayanand University calendar.

1. Four elected Office Bearers — President, Vice-President, General Secretary and Treasurer;

2. Eleven members to be nominated by the President of the Managing Committee;

3. One nominee of Director, Higher Education.

4. One nominee of the respective university; i.e. KU/MDU/GJU;

5. Two elected representatives of the teachers of the respective college;

6. One elected representative of the non-teaching staff of the respective college; and

7. The Principal of the respective college.

Further, the representatives of teachers and non teaching staff will attend the meeting of the managing committee whenever the agenda item pertaining to their college is discussed. However, it was directed that the proceedings of items pertaining to different colleges university-wise in the state be recorded separately for administrative ease to avoid any legal complication. Registrar, MDU and Dean of Colleges, KU, were also advised to carry out amendments in their calendar in accordance with the amendment made in the Act, 1979 regarding one management committee for a group of colleges. DHE was also to amend his instructions accordingly.

The governing body of DAV Colleges in Haryana since then continues to be constituted strictly in conformity with the above decisions. It has full legal sanction behind it and does not violate in the smallest detail the norms laid down in the respective university calendars or the directions issued by the Government of Haryana from time to time. The nominees of the Government and universities are present invariably in all the meetings of the governing body. The office-bearers are elected by the managing committee in the presence of the government and university representatives. This governing body is the appointing and punishing authority. All appointments in Haryana DAV colleges are made by the governing body as per university/government norms in the presence of the DHE’s and VC’s nominees. Transfers are also made by this governing body taking care not to affect adversely the prospects or material benefits of the incumbents. There is not a single case where the senior or selection grade have been denied to anyone on account of these transfers.

GENERAL SECRETARY
Governing Body, DAV Colleges,
Haryana

Rising crime against women

Apropos of the editorial “Significant judgement” (August 28), by overruling the judgement of the Sessions Court, later upheld by the High Court of Himachal Pradesh, in the case of a 13-year-old rape victim, the apex court has once again reinforced people’s confidence in India’s judicial system.

The trial court classified it as a case of “rape with mutual consent”, notwithstanding the fact that the innocent victim had just entered her teens. The judgement had raised many “whats and whys”, and the finger of suspicion was pointed at our judicial system.

Almost daily, we come across reports of rapes and gangrapes of innocent victims, ending up with murder or suicide. Those involved in such inhuman acts are none other than unsuspecting uncles, cousins family friends and other acquaintances.

Ironically, they seldom get punished either by the court of law or by the law-enforcing machinery. And if at all the person involved in the act is nabbed, he is acquitted in the absence of evidence, for no girl belonging to a conservative Indian family would like to face insulting questions in police stations and the courts.

It goes without saying that once such a lecher is let off without awarding any punishment to him, more of his clan are born. In certain cases, the police is reluctant to even lodge an FIR. The matter then rolls in the corridors of justice. There, too, one can expect the kind of treatment meted out to the 13-year-old rape victim.

Where should one go and seek justice if trapped in such a paradoxical situation? Our judicial system is to be solely blamed for the rising rate of crime against women.

A cursory look at the thousands of cases gathering dust in the courts will offer an insight into the functioning of our tardy legal system. The system is required to be revamped so that it functions as a court for dispensing justice and not for denying justice.

RAMESH K. DHIMAN
Chandigarh

Guru’s statue

Being a devout Sikh, I am shocked to learn that a statue of Guru Gobind Singh has been installed at Nanaksar Thath Gurdwara on the outskirts of Nakodar in gross violation of religious tenets. (“Guru’s statue in gurdwara”, August 28). Sikhism forbids the practice of idol worship.

It is a pity that the statue of the same Guru who forbade the Sikhs to adore idols has been installed and that too in a gurdwara, from where the devotees have to learn “rehat-maryada” of their faith. Is it not an insult to the great Guru?

There is no force in the argument of the gurdwara head, Baba Gurbakhsh Singh, that the installing of the statue is not against the Sikh tenets, as at least six statues of Guru Hargobind exist in different gurdwaras in Ludhiana district. Is there any wisdom in following a wrong precedent?

BHAGWAN SINGH
Qadian