Now let the probe team do its job : Welcome development at MU
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: August 18 2018 -

Now let the fact finding committee get down to the business of probing the charges levelled against AP Pandey.

Innocent until proven guilty is the universal understanding in any stand off or dispute and let this also stand true in the case of AP Pandey but it would do well for all to recall that the ‘oust Pandey’ call was a unanimous cry from the MU community and not a demand raised by some disgruntled students, teachers and employees of MU.

Now that MUSU, MUTA and MUSA have agreed to suspend the shutdown of MU, which has been in force for than two months, the needed efforts should be channelised to declare the results of college students, particularly students who have just their given their 6th Semester exams.

Not that it would change the equation or brighten their chances of moving to universities outside Manipur, but at least students desirous of continuing at MU for their higher studies can now breathe easy.

For those who had their eyes on moving outside will have to wait for the next academic session.

This is the sad reality. A disturbing thought it is, but the question still remains how the students who stand to lose one academic year will deal with the situation.

Will they just be content to wait for the next academic session and wish for the best or will they take up any other activities ?

This is a question which all should ponder over for remember a break in the academic pursuit of the young students can have a negative impact on the concentration of the young students.

And one year is a pretty long time.

This is where parents and the students themselves need to come together and see how they can spend their time more fruitfully by engaging in some socially productive activities.

No victor here. Even if the fact finding committee finds the allegations levelled by the university community against Pandey true and correct, it should not be taken that a winner has emerged from the stand off.

Viewing anything along this line would be missing the trees for the woods and all need to come to the point that if at all the question of who has lost emerges then it will be the students, particularly those who stand to lose one academic year.

For the moment, the storm and fury at MU seems to have subsided, but this is also the right time for all, particularly the teaching community of MU to seriously introspect why AP Pandey was sent here in the first place.

This is a point which has been repeated many times in this column and if no lesson is learnt now then it would be for the loss of the varsity.

Politics at universities is a given, but when this politics expose a place of learning to a situation where it can only get worse then it is time to give a rethink to the different approaches adopted by different parties in the varsity.

Let the probe proceed fairly and here is also hoping that the relevant order for reconstituting the fact finding committee is issued as assured in the meeting on August 16.

Professor AP Pandey has also demonstrated how well connected he is and it is a tragedy that appointment to the office of VC of MU has been politicised to such an extent.