Prolonged lockout in FWU, students demand revocations of appointments

The central office of Far Western University (FWU has remained closed for the past 38 days, while the offices of the controller and deputy controller of examinations have been padlocked for the past 22 days.

The Rastriya Prajatantrik Student Union politically aligned to the Rastriya Prajatantra Party padlocked the offices demanding an end to the culture of political sharing in appointments of the University office bearers and teachers.

Likewise, the student union close to the CPN (Unified Socialist) enforced the lockout, protesting against the 'repeated' questions paper in the faculty of sociology.

The prolonged lockout has severely impacted the university's operations. While the student union affiliated with the Unified Socialist has agreed to lift the lockout, other student unions persist in their protest, causing disruptions to university activities, according to University administration.

"Consensus has been elusive despite the several rounds of meetings with protesting parties. They have demanded the repeal of appointments in the central departments including campus chief, but the University is not in the position of revoking them as they followed the set procedures," the administration claimed.

It is noted that each decision of the University general makes the student irate, leading to the lockout. Prior to this, the University was padlocked for nine months.

Rastriya Prajatantrik Students Union president for FWU, Prem Rawal, said they wanted the end of the culture of political sharing in the University. "The protest continues until the demand is met," he said, accusing the University officials of paying no heed to ease the situation.

Unified Socialist Union Kanchanpur coordinator Ramesh Pant accused the University officials of granting affiliations for constituent colleges purely for economic gains just before their terms concluded. As he said, such appointments made by the University must be revoked.

FWU former dean Dr Tekraj Pant said the culture of prolonged lockout and protests is never good for the progress of University and students. He also pointed out the unnecessarily political meddling form teachers and employees in the University business.

The University was established in 2067 BS, but continues to be marred by frequent protests and political interference, facing hurdles towards the progress, it is said.---