The news of the Hindu College teacher Samarveer Singh’s death by suicide should have created a storm in Delhi University. That did not happen. Why? Singh was ‘only’ an ad-hoc teacher! So it may not be an issue serious enough even for the Delhi University Teachers Association (DUTA) to take up, despite ad hoc teachers being its members.But, it’s interesting to ponder over the fact that if the democracy of a country does not care about the death of a voter, why should the union of that country’s educational institution agonise over an ad-hoc teacher ending his own life?Or maybe the students of Hindu College were busy protesting against another injustice, so they may not have had the time to think about the death of their teacher. The students had been protesting against the administration’s move to impose several restrictions on their annual fest. So, one doesn’t know if they could spare even two minutes to remember Singh before the festival.Even those ad-hoc teachers who took to the streets demanding regularisation of their jobs remained silent. There is a reason why they are not protesting.Currently, almost all of them are running from one college to another to appear for interviews for permanent positions. They do not have the time to protest. There is a rush of permanent appointments and everyone is trying their luck. Luck, as it turns out, is not on the side of most of them, as can be seen from the measure Singh took.Also read: Six Tables That Tell the Story of Academic Unfreedom in India‘Merit is not the basis’For years, a cause for concern for Delhi University colleges has been that it is not your merit or qualification but luck and the right connections that would get you a job. How strong and effective the ‘source’ of a candidate for a post decides whether she gets appointed in a Delhi University college or not. One can say that this is not a recent phenomenon. We have been observing this ‘approach’ for a long time.Another hope for a temporary teacher is the principal of the college. How influential and powerful he is, and how much power he wants to use for the benefit of ad-hoc teachers working in his college determines whether ad-hoc candidates stand any chance in the interviews or not.Like Singh, there are hundreds of temporary teachers who are watching helplessly as their positions are being snatched away. All of them have been teaching temporarily for years. Some have even worked for more than a decade. After each session, they endure a phase of insecurity: whether their appointment would be renewed or not. Now that the new session is going to start, their life hangs by the thread of luck and coincidence.Why would Singh have decided to end his own life? Because if you are not selected in the college where you have been teaching for years, then it is impossible to get a job in any other college. Everyone knows it and at least now, we need to talk openly about this matter.For the last two months, my old students, who have been teaching temporarily for eight to 10 years, have been telling me how the interviews are ‘meaningless’. They feel humiliated in every interview. What is even more insulting for them is that some of their own students have been selected in their place. The candidates who are many years junior to them have also been selected. Were the selected candidates more qualified or meritorious? How would that be assessed in two minutes of interview time?The answer is, merit is not the basis. Temporary teachers can continue teaching only in the colleges where the principal decides not to allow them to be displaced. But this has happened only for one or two of them who enjoy the patronage of the principal.Three months ago, I got a call from the father of a temporary teacher. He could not believe that the college where his daughter had been teaching for eight years, who has research papers published in prestigious research journals, did not find her suitable for the permanent position. The one who replaced her had the benefit of the right kind of connections. The father was deeply upset. He held a high position in the Indian Army. He could not believe that in Delhi University, it is not academic merit that matters but approach and connections.Also read: ‘Ad-Hoc’ Teachers at Delhi University: From the Frying Pan Into the Fire‘Resourceful connections’Today it is an open secret that if you are being recommended by a ‘source’ affiliated to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), then your appointment is almost certain. There is competition even there: there are caste groups, regional factions within the larger RSS family. But one has better chances to get a job if you have access to any of these connections, and especially, if you are backed by the student wing of the RSS.Secondly, as mentioned earlier, the commitment of the principal towards the candidates is another factor that can lead one to get a permanent position or not.Thirdly, if one of the experts is willing to go so far as to do a hard bargain for you: leave one seat for me, take the rest.Among the experts who are called, seldom will you find an independent mind who is so self-respecting that he would refuse to sign on the dotted lines.Not everyone can master these connections. Singh was one such ‘connectionless’ candidate. He taught philosophy. His subject is taught in few colleges of the university. So, there are not too many opportunities. If the college where he worked for eight years throws him out, then where else could he find a place? There was no hope for him.This tradition of permanent instability is inhuman. But it was institutionalised by all the factions of the teacher’s union over a long period of time. The teachers union gave them a false hope for a long time that they would be regularised. Everyone knew that it could not happen lawfully.Are all temporary teachers able? No. But, are we sure that merit is the criterion now? No.The colleges will have to answer how the teachers, who were deemed to be qualified for eight years, have become unqualified today.Singh’s students and colleagues say that he was a capable teacher. The students used to look forward to his class. Then what was the logic of ousting him?In this way, a kind of annihilation drive is going on in the appointments of Delhi University teachers. This is certainly a massacre of talent. The students who are pursuing master’s also know the truth. Such appointments will ruin generations of students. Then these students, who will become teachers, would become like their cronies. This is injustice to many generations of students. Also, this is perhaps the beginning of the destruction of the institution. But who cares?It is argued that what is wrong if today the RSS uses its influence to get its people in, have not the Left or other groups done the same? There is truth in it. But yesterday’s crime does not make today’s crime valid.Vice-chancellors or principals around the world consider it an achievement to attract brilliant minds to their institutions. This is also their ambition. But the same cannot be said about the leadership of India’s educational institutions. Delhi University is no exception. Jawaharlal Nehru University saw similar appointments being made during the tenure of the previous vice-chancellor. The trend continues.The leadership of India’s educational institutions cares about the pleasure of their patrons, not the interest of their students. They do not ask if the contribution of their institute in the field of knowledge will be acknowledged in the world of knowledge. The prestige of today’s colleges is probably measured by the share of their contribution to the annual ‘Guru Dakshina’.This whole thing is inconvenient for us, who as teachers are complicit in this dishonesty, to such an extent that we only whisper about it among ourselves and do not allow any discussion on it outside. Will this one suicide force us to break this conspiracy of silence?Apoorvanand teaches at Delhi University.If you know someone – friend or family member – at risk of suicide, please reach out to them. The Suicide Prevention India Foundation maintains a list of telephone numbers (www.spif.in/seek-help/) they can call to speak in confidence. You could also refer them to the nearest hospital.
