THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES ... : Prof. D.S.L. writes.

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Anyone who happens to pass by our American College, cannot but be struck by the presence of police men on the campus. This is an unusual sight. Till last year, rarely was there any necessity to seek their help. But now, they have been there for more than one year, as per the Madras High Court orders, for the smooth functioning of the college. It is nothing but a terrible tragedy that this institution, founded by selfless and scholarly missionaries with a secular outlook should be facing a sad situation like this.

The diabolic desire of the Bishop of the Madurai-Ramnad Diocese, Rt. Rev.Christopher Asir, to make it a Diocesan institution and bring it under his control, is the root-cause for all the problems the college has been facing for the past one full year. Unfortunately, the then Vice-Principal Dr. George Selvakumar, who should have stood by the college was prepared to betray and barter. His traitorous act of accepting the order of the Bishop making him Principal-in-Charge, while being fully aware of the presence of the Principal, Dr. Chinnaraj Joseph on the campus attending to his duties, was the starting point for an agonizing period in the college.

The naked ambition for power of Dr. Selvakumar was on full display on April 12, 2008 when he tried to occupy the Principal's room with the help of police. (That he did not succeed in his attempt is a different story.) He has had the privilege of being a student, faculty member for decades and administrator of the college. He knows the traditions and he also knows that according to the constitution, the Bishop-Chairman of the Governing Council is just a figure head and cannot interfere in the administration. But, he was willing to dance to the tune of the Bishop sacrificing the interests of the college. If he had been just true to his conscience and stoutly refused to carry out the order of the Bishop, the College would not have plunged into this dismal chaos. It is a matter of shame that a few faculty members also supported him and the Bishop. If the Faculty had displayed unity and stood like a rock against the Bishop, it would have certainly prevented its slide down. Sadly, this did not happen too.

The remarkable courage and determination of the Principal, Dr. Chinnaraj Joseph and overwhelming majority of the Faculty, non-teaching staff and students both past and present and former Principals has gone a long way in protecting the college so far from the onslaught of the crooked and the unscrupulous. The valiant struggle has had its ups and downs; moments of happiness and frustration. But, it continues and will continue till it achieves the goal of preserving and protecting the identity and individuality of the The American College, permanently.


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