Upendra–CK’s conflict leads Madhesh Agricultural University to verge of closure

Kathmandu: The conflict between Upendra Yadav, the Chairperson of the Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) Nepal, and CK Raut, the Chairperson of the Janamat Party, has led the Madhesh Agricultural University to a crisis.

Due to the clash between the two leaders, the university is going through an economic crisis. After not receiving salaries and benefits for six months, associate professors and staff members have locked down the university.

On Thursday, employees locked the administrative building of the university in Rajbiraj, Saptari, demanding immediate payment of salaries and other benefits.

Removing Vice Chancellor Dr. Baidhnath Mahat from his office, they locked the university. The protesting staff complained of not receiving their salaries and allowances since Bhadra (August–September).

Despite repeated efforts to bring the matter to the attention of the university’s Vice-Chancellor and the Minister of Education and Culture of Madhesh Province, Rani Sharma Tiwari, the employees faced only ignorance of service and facilities.

‘We repeatedly informed the Education Minister about the financial crisis of the university and the problems faced by the staff. After receiving no response, we were forced to go on strike,’ said Associate Professor Avinash Kumar Yadav.

Registrar of the university, Bhagwan Thakur, said the university’s administrative work has come to a halt due to the government suspending financial transactions and continuing the investigation.

‘Since last six months, salaries, festival expenses, fuel costs, electricity, water, rent for houses and vehicles, as well as dues for suppliers of goods, educational materials, and fuel have not been paid, and they have stopped providing services. As a result, all administrative, academic, research, and financial activities are at a standstill,’ he said.

Budget Retrenched due to Upendra-CK Conflict

The conflict between Upendra and CK has also led to a reduction in the university’s budget.

Although the Madhesh Province government had ensured a multi-year plan worth around one and a half billion rupees, Registrar Thakur stated that no funds have been made available to the university.

The JSP-led government allocated 31 million rupees to the university in 2078 BS (2021 AD) and 30 million rupees in 2079 BS (2022 AD). The university was even included in the JSP-led government’s provincial pride project. However, the university has only received 1 million rupees in budget allocation this year.

Conflict from the Inauguration Itself

The conflict between Yadav and Raut was evident from the inauguration of the university. In 2078 BS (2021 AD), Yadav was the Health Minister in the federal government, and in the province, the government was also led by JSP. It was at his initiative that the work to establish the university began.

Meanwhile, the university building was completed in 2080 by Bikram Sambat (2023 AD). On 8th Magh, 2080, the foundation stone of the building was laid by Yadav.

However, Janamat Party Chairperson Raut argued that since the university was located in his electoral constituency and the Minister of Education in Madhesh Province was also from his party, the foundation stone should be laid by him or by someone appointed by the Education Minister.

Janmat cadres, locals padlock Madhesh Agricultural University

Madhesh Province Chief Minister Saroj Yadav, who is also the Vice-Chancellor of the university, took a stance that the inauguration should be done by the JSP Chairperson. After his stance, Janamat Party activists locked down the university.

Conflict between two parties places students’ future in limbo

The conflict between the Chairpersons of JSP Nepal and the Janamat Party has placed the university’s activities and the future of the students in limbo. According to Registrar Thakur, the BSc Agri entrance exam cannot be conducted due to a lack of funds, and as a result, the admission process has not moved forward.

In other universities, entrance exams for the same faculties and sessions have been completed, and classes have already started. However, at Madhesh Agricultural University, students are still waiting for the entrance exam.

Not only the entrance exams but regular exams for students have also been affected. The agricultural university was established with faculties in Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Fisheries, and Food Technology.

For the construction of the university building, Rajbiraj Municipality provided 26 bighas and 8 kathas of land in Ward No. 12. Due to the suspension of financial transactions, contractors have not been paid, leading them to halt construction work.

Currently, 100 students are studying in the four-year Agricultural Bachelor’s program. For the 081-82 academic session, 50 students were invited for admission, but 110 students applied.

However, due to the lack of funds, the entrance exam could not be conducted, and the admission process has been halted

Nepali version of the news story