Umesh Ashok Kadam, the Dean of Students of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), has refuted allegations of nepotism and gross misuse of his official power in getting his wife enrolled in PhD at Jawaharlal Nehru University's School of life Sciences (SlS) under Professor Atul Johri, who is now accused of sexual harassment of women scholars.
Speaking to The Pioneer, Kadam allenged that he and his wife are being targeted by left faction because they both belong to “Dalit” community and are supporting decisions taken by Vice-Chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar on mandatory attendance for students.
“We are from the first generation of Dalits who are educated and are well placed. They are simply unable to tolerate and bear with this fact,” said Kadam.
However, many from the left faction have rejected his claim, calling it an attempt to play “Dalit card” to save his neck.
It would be pertinent to mention here that Kaveri Umesh Kadam, wife of Umesh Ashok Kadam is enrolled in PhD at SlS under Professor Atul Johri. The JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) has targeted the Dean of Students along with Johri, alleging his complicity in getting wife enrolled for PhD under Johri by misusing his official power and alleged proximity to Johri.
He said that after the name of his wife was dragged in the whole episode and she is under severe “mental stress” and is not in a condition to talk.
“She was enrolled in direct PhD in January 2017 and her being from an electronics background and yet getting enrolled in School of life Sciences is well within the rules and regulations and is indeed a ‘multidisciplinary’ approach in sciences,” he said.
“Her PhD topic is Image processing of Britritysis virus on tomato plant. For the Image processing part she is attached to a lab at Rajgad Dnyanpeeth Technical Campus in Maharashtra but for the basic theoretical part she is attached to the laboratory at SlS JNU,” said DoS.
Defending the credentials for his wife he said that his wife taught as lecturer at NDA Khadakwasla after her M.Tech from Bharati Vidyapeeth University, Pune.
“There are many teachers in JNU whose wives are doing PhD in JNU. Moreover, there are wives of many professors who are working at the same centre as colleagues. But they have never raised any question on them. I am being targeted because of my administrative position and stance and because of being a Dalit,” said Kadam.
Kadam is also assigned with the responsibility of acting chairperson of Centre for Historical Studies replacing Sucheta Mahajan in a recent rejig by administration.