New Delhi, April 23: A Chhattisgarh university’s decision to suspend the son of a Congress MP for allegedly assaulting a teacher has triggered counter-charges of political victimisation of the boy in the BJP-ruled state.
Bilaspur’s Guru Ghasidas University, the state’s only central university, suspended Craig McLeod on February 2 on charges of beating a lecturer with a chair and then trying to strangulate him. He was suspended on the basis of an FIR filed by the lecturer against Craig, son of Congress Lok Sabha MP Ingrid McLeod — one of two nominated Anglo-Indians in the lower House.
The boy was completing his second year of engineering in computer science. “After his suspension, he was given a chance to appear at a hearing and defend himself. But he demanded that his father be allowed to accompany him, which we rejected,” vice-chancellor Lakshman Chaturvedi told The Telegraph.
Chaturvedi’s decision to suspend the boy is being lauded in Delhi as a rare example of a vice-chancellor acting against indiscipline by a student from a powerful background.
But the McLeods are claiming that it was precisely because of their Congress background that the boy was targeted, both by the university and Chhattisgarh police subsequently. “This is a clear case of political victimisation — but I am determined to try and fight this battle as an ordinary citizen without using our connections,” Rodney McLeod, Ingrid’s husband, said.
The McLeods have approached Chhattisgarh High Court and plan to petition the Prime Minister and the President with documents that they argue indict Chaturvedi and other university staff. Craig, an admittedly poor student, was arguing with a teacher seeking attendance for a class he entered late, when another teacher passing by intervened and asked the boy to behave himself.
But while the university claims that Craig later followed the teacher who had intervened into his official room and attacked him, the McLeods claim that it was the teacher who first abused and assaulted their son, who only returned blows in defence.
While the police registered an FIR against Craig, they have refused to register a counter FIR on a complaint filed the same day by Craig against the teacher he is accused of having assaulted.
“We believe the police received orders from the top levels of the state government to harass Craig and charge him with criminal assault as that would embarrass Ingrid and help the BJP,” Rodney said.
Although the university is centrally run, Rodney accused the vice chancellor of carrying a bias against his son because Craig tried to organise elections for the National Students Union of India (NSUI), the students’ wing of the Congress, at the college.
The university is one of three taken over by the Centre last year.
