Ad-hoc teachers: Don't devalue education profession

New Delhi: Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Friday called for putting an end to the phenomenon of having ad-hoc teachers and said the education profession should not be devalued.

His assertion came in the wake of the alleged suicide by a 33-year-old Delhi University ad-hoc teacher who was recently removed from the job at the Hindu College.

In a tweet, Sibal said, "Suicide by: Former ad hoc teacher. New Education Policy? Is this the vision?"

"Ad hoc teachers An all-India phenomenon put an end to this. Don't devalue the teaching profession. Don't devalue education," said the former human resource development minister, now known as the education minister.

Sibal, who was a Union minister during UPA 1 and 2, quit the Congress in May last year and was elected to the Rajya Sabha as an Independent member with the Samajwadi Party's support.

He recently floated the non-electoral platform 'Insaaf', aimed at fighting injustice.

Samarveer, the ad-hoc teacher who was recently removed from the job at the Hindu College, was found dead at his house in outer Delhi's Rani Bagh area, police said on Thursday.

They said Samarveer, originally from Molki village in Rajasthan's Baran district, was found hanging from a ceiling fan in a room he shared with his cousin who had gone to duty at the time of the incident.

Police said no suicide note was found, but according to the cousin the deceased was under depression. The cousin told the police that Samarveer, who was unmarried, was working as an ad-hoc lecturer at Hindu College but a different lecturer was appointed in his place recently.

Delhi University teachers and students staged a protest outside the Hindu College and demanded justice for Samarveer. They raised slogans and carried placards like "We stand with the ad-hoc teachers' struggle demanding job security"