High drama over VC resignation; most colleges agree to UGC directive

Attacking Dinesh Singh and the previous UPA government, Delhi University Teachers Association (DUTA) president Nandita Narain said the association considers the FYUP an "irresponsible succumbing of the statutory bodies to the whims of the vice chancellor".

"In fact, the FYUP was announced to the media even before the university community had an opportunity to discuss it. The academic council accepted the recommendations by a task force constituted by the vice chancellor in unimaginable haste," the association said in a statement.

It said that before implementing the FYUP, the university did not examine the infrastructure, teachers and other necessities to accommodate 33 percent more students in each college.

But DU's executive council member Aditya Narayan Mishra described the FYUP as "good".

"The FYUP is much cheaper than the undergraduate courses in private universities," Mishra told reporters.

"UGC's latest diktat to DU to admit students in the three-year course and not in FYUP is a violation of the long standing autonomy of the DU. FYUP is not in contravention of the Delhi University Act 1922," added Mishra, who has also filed a petition in the Supreme Court on the matter.

The Supreme Court dismissed a public interest litigation seeking quashing of the FYUP, and asked the petitioner to approach the Delhi High Court.

The Congress, meanwhile, accused the Narendra Modi government of creating a "mess which was never seen in Indian education system".

"It is very unfortunate as the future of lakhs of students is in the dark. This is not about duration of a course but the government's policy. The NSUI has been demanding a three-year course for a long time, and, therefore, the day the government took oath, they should have made it into a three-year course," said former union minister Manish Tewari.