Students awaiting degrees since 2019 over delay in submission of assessment to Kashmir University

Students from across the country enrolled in courses including Bachelors in Education (BEd) from private colleges in the Valley since 2019 have accused Kashmir University of putting their careers on the line by not acknowledging their internal assessments — which were submitted late by the colleges and hence delayed their degrees. The varsity, meanwhile, said they were simply following statutes.

Many students alleged that the university was stonewalling the completion of their two-year degree course of some 1,000 students from Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, Orissa, Uttarakhand and other states which over various parts of time since 2019 have taken BEd degrees in various private colleges of Kashmir.

They said the students are those whose colleges failed to submit their internal assessments to the university of various batches on time and their results of the respective subjects were shown as fail after they appeared in the theory exams. They added that despite representations and requests by students to not punish them for the mistake of their colleges, their degrees are stalled for want of results.

Either the first and second semester batches are not able to pursue their third or final semesters or those doing the latter are not able to complete their degrees.

A student from Rajasthan blamed the Majid Zaman Baba Controller of Examinations saying he was not sympathetic to the students. “The missing of internals by colleges is a normal thing and these issues are handled at the administrative level by the institutions but the concerned official seems to be hell bent on running our careers,” he said not wishing to be named.

Another outside student questioned the rationale of the university officials. “What is our mistake? Why are they punishing us for the mistake of a college? Doesn’t the university have the prerogative to take action against college rather than making us run from pillar to post,” he questioned.

A student from Orissa, meanwhile, said a committee was formed by the university to sort out the issue last month. “The committee gave a verdict in our favour, but there is again dilly dallying in announcing our results giving effect to the internals in our favour.”

The students said a batch of seven was allowed to complete their degrees when the varsity vice-chancellor (V-C) gave them approval and their internals were acknowledged. “What about the batches of 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022? Why this discrepancy? We are psychologically perturbed,” a student from Kashmir questioned.

Addressing the issues, the varsity’s controller of examinations, Majid Zaman Band, said there is statutory requirement that internals are to be submitted by concerned colleges before the conduct of examinations. “If the students appear in the exams without the submission of internal marks, he is declared a ‘fail’. The revised awards amounts to modification of results and violation of statutes,” he added.

Band said the committee only gave a go ahead for the 2022 batch and the V-C had allowed a more recent batch not the older batches, adding that the numbers are not 1,000 but they are also compiling the list of old batches and will consider it for a one time relaxation after receiving all the representations from students.

“From 2018-2019 to 2021, we will make a detailed note and compile the names of those students and send it to the vice chancellor for consideration. As of now we have received just a couple of representations. Not many have come so far. The students should come up to us with representations. We will seek an approval from the vice chancellor to give them a one-time relaxation and resolve the issue,” he said.