A CHRONICLER’S TITBITS ...

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"சில நேரங்களில் சில மனிதர்கள் ..."

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A CHRONICLER’S TITBITS ….



Let me repeat my apology for leaving our blog high and dry for so long.

It was last December 15th when we got the judgment – quite a favorable one. The bishoporic group lost the case squarely and the judgment was emphatic in denying any right to bishop in any of the college affairs or to his appointee, George Selvakumar. The only draw back was that it is not Chinnaraj Joseph but Anbudurai who was permitted to run the college till the final verdict. As expected they went against this judgment for an appeal and got it. Though the judgment was out and out in our favor, the stay stopped Anbudurai to act as Prinicipal-in-charge. Instead the college administration was to be carried out by the Director of Collegiate Education through some of her staff, either by a Joint Director or an Assistant Director.

Thus from that 19th Dec the day-to-day activities of the college are administered by the government staff. It was one Mr. Jothi Murugan and then Mr. Baba Mohideen. It was bishop’s contribution to the community and to the college. A great service indeed!

Though the administrators are to maintain status quo in all affairs and to regulate the routine activities of the college, they were about to ‘lose their balance’ now and then! Correctional procedures are to be taken up by our staff then and there. For instance –


• for no reason some X was given an appointment order as the Warden of Dudley Hostel in the place of Dr. Silas, the present Warden. A new warden for the Ladies Hostel was attempted. But our staff had to go in a group to make Mr. Jothi Murugan withdraw those two appointments. After this incident he went on medical leave for a few days.

• an outside caterer was in charge of feeding students in the hostel when the struggle was going on. ‘They’ with the help of Mr. Jothi Murugan wanted to retain those caterer even after the hostel mess employees, who were in toto with the striking faculty, were back to their duties. Students themselves rose up against this illegal usurping and the matter was taken to the Collector and the damage was averted.

• With this same caterer the bishop had a balance of payment of nearly 9 lakhs of rupees since any Tom Dick and Harry on the side of the bishop had a field day as far as food was concerned during our struggle. A big police posse was fed by the bishop. All those “loyal” staff on their side enjoyed “free meal” everyday in the ante-room of Principal’s Office! (செஞ்சோற்றுக் கடன் !?)This extravaganza came to an end after the last judgment. However the balance stood still. So now they wanted to pay the money to this caterer from the college accounts. This very illegal and more than that, the very unethical act was stalled by our staff.

So goes the affairs of the college. The great liberation of the college from the cruel and unlawful hands of the bishoporic group is a matter for jubilation. But they keep their clutches on some with all their available means. However the day cannot be far off when we get back our college on its glorious past.

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I think as a ‘self-appointed chronicler’ I would take this opportunity to share some of my personal feelings with you. Some of the things that have happened make me wonder how on earth some people stoop down so low and behave in such a lousy and uncouth manner. Some snippets:

• Of all it was Geroge Selvakumar who makes me feel so sick. Had he alone stood on his earlier conviction and refused to accept the appointment order given to him by bishop ... ! He came to meet Principal Chinnaraj Joseph with his ‘appointment letter’ which asked to him to take up the post of Principal “in the event of Principal Chinnaraj’s absence …”. He accepted to decline the “offer” at 7 am, since Principal Chinnaraj was very much there. We don’t know what happened. He was there trying to capture Principal’s room at 9 am! So many rumours; so many figures ... No one knows what made him change his stripes and at what price!

• Well, George Selvakumar stabbed from back. He shot the first arrow. Then comes a court order. It was a frontal blow. The bishoporic group gets ‘injunction’ from the court. That derailed the smooth journey the college had, irrespective of all the bishoporic maneuvering.

• If it was the court of Justice which gave a hold to maneuvere further to the bishopric group, the dept of Police were more bountiful and magnanimous. Principal Chinnaraj and some more were called for a peace meeting by them on that morning. When they were attending the meeting at the Tallakulam police station, the police bandhobust in the college was partially withdrawn while bishop and all those pastors in their habits barged into the campus and captured the principal’s office. Including some higher officials police gave full protection to the marauders. The injunction stopped Chinnaraj Joseph from carrying out his duties as principal but it never authorized the bishop to take up the college. But the police dept was quite ‘satisfied’ with the injunction order alone to not only allow but also help the bishop to take the college into his vile hands. I still remember the caption in the news item of Indian Express: “cassocks and khaki capture college”.

• Only if George kept his conscience, only if the police department maintained its neutrality …. Oh! So many ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ ….….


• Another person who changed his stripes was prof Arul Pragasam. At the beginning of the problem he vowed that he would be for the college. But then he became the first lieutenant of Christober.

• Some were sane and very vehemently objected to the nefarious scheming of the bishop. But when ‘chair’ was unlawfully captured by the bishoporic group they jumped onto that band wagon! Prof Vijayakumar is one such soul.


He even made a lovely speech during the dharna (picture of him during dharna) and showered so much encomiums and bouquets on Chinnaraj and was all brickbats for bishop. Very strongly he condemned the bishop and said had the bishop and bursar been our alumni they would not have dared to do such a thing to the college. He used to be in every conclave of Principal Chinnaraj. Never failed to be in every closed-door meetings of the Principal. We thought he was so sincere and close to the Principal. Only later we understood that he has been all along a black sheep with some other ulterior motive! I strongly recommend him as a good candidate for Mossad!

• Not lagging far behind Vijayakumar stands Prof. Emmanuel Jebarajan. Though he did not come to the closed-door meetings of Principal he showed great enthusiasm in opposing the bishop in the beginning of the struggle. He, as the HOD of the department, was even complaining to me about the “prowess” of Christober in some unit theory … something in basic Maths. He gave me a copy of the printed handbill that he and his group of friends distributed at the cathedral. It was against a pastor who was trying to influence the people against Chinnaraj from the pulpit. ( To see the copy of the circular click: http://saveamericancollege.blogspot.com/2008/05/keep-off-from-our-pulpits-please.html )

• I extend my personal appreciation and our collective gratefulness for those who even without any direct involvement with the college stood by our side at the time of this trials and tribulations. One good example of such persons is Dr. Gopalakrishnan. I abstain from mentioning other names just because some of them prefer remaining at the back. I sincerely thank them all.

• To meet the collector at the beginning of the struggle we just spread the word among our retired professors and principals just 12 to 18 hours before. We got a very good turn out at the collectorate. So is the concern of many retired professors for the college. But there are also many who never even bothered to convey their concern in any way. Their attitude of I-don’t-care-whatever-happens made me wonder whether all those years they spent in the campus were like a compulsive living with an unloved and unlovable spouse! How can anybody be so unattached with an institution where they spent most of their lives? In this list of ‘learned professors’ there were people who were at the top of the adminstration, as Wardens, HODs, Bursars, Vice-Principals …why even as principal!

• With regard to the present faculty, there are mixed feelings for me. Those who stood on the side of the Principal stood so not for the personal love for the man but for the college. Their never-say-die-spirit was the sole reason for the success of the struggle. It is a well known fact that the bishoporic group never expected such a total rejection of them by so many among the faculty, teaching and non-teaching. They took it for granted that once they got into power everyone in the faculty would kneel down before them. Probably they were accustomed to only such things in all the institutions they have been running. They were for a shock. The women faculty, the non-teaching staff, and even the young turks of recently appointed staff became astonishingly a very strong force. My sincere vanakkam to them!

• Normally our college staff assume some superior air and always think that they are unique and intelligent. This attitude was always sensed by me in my college years, that too during the struggles spearheaded by MUTA. One reason for this is, American College has always been a haven, with immeasurable freedom. While in the early days of my career there were many colleges which neither paid the staff regularly every month nor the full amount. Even in such a time our college paid the vacation salary before hand! Our staff never experienced any financial or administrative problems from the management. So the sufferings other college faculty underwent were never even known to our faculty. Secondly they were so ‘intelligent’ that they know whenever there is a strike there are people who would fight to the finish and get all the benefits for all. So, why bother? – that was the attitude of most of the staff always. Yep, they are really intelligent since they know how to have the cake and eat it too!

Now also the same attitude prevailed among those who stayed with the
bishoporic group. They are so ‘intelligent’ that they always remain as “TIME SERVERS” without any personal convictions or principles. They are so ’intelligent’ they think that they know which side of their bread is buttered. My pain is if such elite group of people lives in such a state of mind – without scruples, without spine to fight back against evil forces – what sort of students they would produce!

• I salute the old students who were so magnanimous in sending their valuable contributions. There were also some alumni contacting or even visiting many of us very regularly. Two alumni were seriously taking up the cause of our college in media well against so much of odds.



It was Gerald (of the two legal luminaries in the photo, Gerald is the one sitting on the left) whose untiring help in the legal matters is to be greatly acknowledged. Let me not say more about those who donated so readily and so much, lest I may make them feel shy!

* However on the wrong side of this, I expected many of our alumni to interact through the postings, airing their concern and views on the happenings in the campus, by way of feedbacks, comments, arguments ... Many of them said that they have been following the blog but mostly as 'silent spectators'. For a teacher to enjoy teaching he should know that he is listened; a class room without proper participation of the learners is the dullest thing for a teacher. One cannot keep shouting to just benches and chairs! Many a time when I wrote posts in this blog, I felt myself a 'voice in wilderness'!

• For long I wanted to say something to our present students. Let me say that in another post………..



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