Under suspension, Patna University English professor Shiv Jatan Thakur has petitioned Raj Bhavan to institute an FIR against varsity registrar Sanjay Kumar Sinha and vice-chancellor Y.C. Simhadri for alleged fraudulent payment of salaries and pension to teachers in violation of a Patna High Court directive.

Ironically, Thakur had been a teacher to registrar Sanjay Kumar Sinha during his postgraduate days at the varsity in the late eighties. While Thakur appealed the Raj Bhavan to lodge the FIR on August 8, the chancellor’s office on Thursday late night issued a notification appointing Sinha as full-time registrar who was earlier working as in-charge registrar of the varsity.

The issue dates back to 2005, when Sinha was working as associate professor (reader) with the varsity. According to sources, in June 2005, Patna University promoted 124 teachers, including Sinha, from associate professors to professors. However, a PU teacher at Patna High Court challenged the promotion of teachers on the ground that the dually constituted screening committee did not approve it. Based on the teacher’s petition, the high court quashed the promotion of the teachers directing the varsity to constitute a screening committee. Based on the high court directive, the Patna University cancelled the promotions of the teachers and even the varsity syndicate in a September 2006 meeting approved it. Sources said the teachers approached a larger bench of the HC, but at the same time they were getting salaries in the professors’ scale. 

Thakur said: “I don’t know why the matter was pushed to the cold storage, but when I became a senate member of Patna University in capacity of head of the English department, I raised the issue at the senate meeting on March 2016, stating that the readers’ pay scale matches that of professors. This is palpable fraud.”

After raising the issue at the senate meeting, Thakur sought a Right to Information reply from the university on salaries to such teachers. In April 2016, he approached the Raj Bhavan and the Governor House sought a comment from the varsity.
Sinha, who was appointed the full-time registrar by the Raj Bhavan, however, said: “We all know the fact that the university has replied to the chancellor. It’s a very old case and those raising the issue lack substance and know very little facts.” Thakur again approached the Raj Bhavan on August 8, requesting an FIR against the registrar and the VC on the grounds that the reply was “false”. Vice-chancellor Y.C. Simhadri had suspended Thakur on July 10 on charges of gross “misconduct” at a meeting of department heads at the VC’s residence. Thakur had even approached the chancellor against his suspension.