JUTA Opposes Bengal University Transfer Bill, Calls It ‘Attack on Autonomy’

The Jadavpur University Teachers’ Association (JUTA) on Tuesday criticised the West Bengal government’s proposed Bill allowing inter-university transfers of teaching and non-teaching employees, calling it an attack on university autonomy and job security.

Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said on Monday that the Bill would be introduced during a special one-day session of the West Bengal Assembly on September 10.

In a statement, JUTA said universities have their own rules and procedures, with employees appointed under specific service conditions. It argued that forcing staff to work under a different set of rules at another university would be against natural justice. The teachers’ body also raised concerns that the proposed transfer system could potentially be used against employees who criticise government policies.

JUTA said the government’s move to centralise the university system could weaken institutional autonomy and claimed that such a transfer model does not exist at the state or central level or in universities abroad. The association demanded that existing employment conditions of university employees should not be changed through the proposed legislation.