New Delhi, Delhi University Vice-Chancellor Yogesh Singh has said that the varsity can provide further relief to a visually impaired professor who has been fined nearly Rs 7 lakh for 'overstaying' in his hostel.
Sharmishtha Atreja, a philosophy professor in the Faculty of Arts, received an order from the university's Real Estate Department on June 14 informing her that a 30 percent deduction would be made from her salary starting this month to recover 6.74. 100 rupees as fine.
In response, she wrote to DU officials to revoke the order, saying it was "unfair and exhausting". She asked them to vacate the entire penalty, saying that she has to run around to solve the problem that has placed a financial burden on her.
The Disability Rights Funds (DRF), a global disability rights community that supports Atreja in the case, also questioned the calculation of the fine imposed on him, calling it "absurd."
When asked about the order directing a 30 per cent cut in Atreja's salary, V-C Singh said: "We have already waived 50 per cent of the fine as a special case considering his situation. The total he was required to pay was of approximately Rs 14 lakh, but after the court order and on humanitarian grounds we cut it to approximately Rs 7 lakh. There are some rules that everyone has to follow and accordingly the fine was imposed for overstaying the university accommodation.
"However, we will still review the case and explore possibilities for further relaxation," he said.
According to Atreja, she stayed at the DU College Girls' Hostel from August 2021 to March 2024 and was asked to vacate the accommodation allotted to her in August 2023, when she finished her tenure as a resident tutor at the hostel.
She said she requested an extension of her stay on multiple occasions but that her requests were allegedly denied.
"When the fine was imposed on me despite my requests for an extension, I had to go to court to intervene in the matter. I am a 100 percent visually impaired person and the distance of the accommodation that the university offered me from the apartment where I teach it was not easy to travel for a person like me.
"I asked the university to provide me with suitable alternative accommodation near the Faculty of Fine Arts citing inaccessibility issues, but they did not grant me any solution until the court also ordered it with this severe penalty," she said.
The university's Real Estate Department offered Atreja new accommodation in Maurice Nagar on March 15 and asked her to vacate the hostel within 10 days.
Atreja stated that the university has been periodically deducting housing and rent allowance (HRA) and leave from the salary.
On Tuesday, a delegation from the DRF met the joint registrar of the Real Estate Department to seek cancellation of the sanction.
On June 21, the DRF wrote to the vice-chancellor saying: "Not only are the calculations absurd, but in reality there is no case of illegal occupation of university premises. Therefore, there is no question of any type of sanction either. We, Therefore, I request you to quash the said orders of penalty and salary deduction with immediate effect."
When commenting on the vice-rector's statement, Atreja stated that it is a "relaxation" for her
It means that the university will revoke the sentence since she lives with her elderly parents.
"If the rector has informed that he will review the decision, this will restore our confidence in the institute, as then only the sanction can be annulled and a message of inclusion will be sent," she added.
Sharmishtha Atreja, a philosophy professor in the Faculty of Arts, received an order from the university's Real Estate Department on June 14 informing her that a 30 percent deduction would be made from her salary starting this month to recover 6.74. 100 rupees as fine.
In response, she wrote to DU officials to revoke the order, saying it was "unfair and exhausting". She asked them to vacate the entire penalty, saying that she has to run around to solve the problem that has placed a financial burden on her.
The Disability Rights Funds (DRF), a global disability rights community that supports Atreja in the case, also questioned the calculation of the fine imposed on him, calling it "absurd."
When asked about the order directing a 30 per cent cut in Atreja's salary, V-C Singh said: "We have already waived 50 per cent of the fine as a special case considering his situation. The total he was required to pay was of approximately Rs 14 lakh, but after the court order and on humanitarian grounds we cut it to approximately Rs 7 lakh. There are some rules that everyone has to follow and accordingly the fine was imposed for overstaying the university accommodation.
"However, we will still review the case and explore possibilities for further relaxation," he said.
According to Atreja, she stayed at the DU College Girls' Hostel from August 2021 to March 2024 and was asked to vacate the accommodation allotted to her in August 2023, when she finished her tenure as a resident tutor at the hostel.
She said she requested an extension of her stay on multiple occasions but that her requests were allegedly denied.
"When the fine was imposed on me despite my requests for an extension, I had to go to court to intervene in the matter. I am a 100 percent visually impaired person and the distance of the accommodation that the university offered me from the apartment where I teach it was not easy to travel for a person like me.
"I asked the university to provide me with suitable alternative accommodation near the Faculty of Fine Arts citing inaccessibility issues, but they did not grant me any solution until the court also ordered it with this severe penalty," she said.
The university's Real Estate Department offered Atreja new accommodation in Maurice Nagar on March 15 and asked her to vacate the hostel within 10 days.
Atreja stated that the university has been periodically deducting housing and rent allowance (HRA) and leave from the salary.
On Tuesday, a delegation from the DRF met the joint registrar of the Real Estate Department to seek cancellation of the sanction.
On June 21, the DRF wrote to the vice-chancellor saying: "Not only are the calculations absurd, but in reality there is no case of illegal occupation of university premises. Therefore, there is no question of any type of sanction either. We, Therefore, I request you to quash the said orders of penalty and salary deduction with immediate effect."
When commenting on the vice-rector's statement, Atreja stated that it is a "relaxation" for her
It means that the university will revoke the sentence since she lives with her elderly parents.
"If the rector has informed that he will review the decision, this will restore our confidence in the institute, as then only the sanction can be annulled and a message of inclusion will be sent," she added.