Sable to Cause J J Closure?

July 23, 2023

‘Chinha’ has been publishing numerous news stories about J J School of Art for several years, only to save this glorious, premiere Art Institute. Institutions like J J, if not managed responsibly, can fall prey to the governing authorities’ actions of capturing its prime land by hook or crook, by way of pointing at some rules and regulations. Under these circumstances, safeguarding J J is the sincere wish of Chinha. Already in a dire state, J J’s situation worsened after Mr Sable took over as its Dean. To make matters further worse, the latest circumstances which have emerged seem to lead to the complete closure of J J because of Sable’s irresponsible actions. Sources indicate that both AICTE and opposition MLAs have decided to besiege J J in this matter.

The reason for this situation is that AICTE plans to revoke J J’s recognition due to its failure to submit the mandatory compliance reports for several years. An attention notice regarding J J had been put up in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on 18th July. If serious mismanagement issues persist, the recognition of J J will undoubtedly be revoked. Clearly, J J’s Dean Vishwanath Sable and Art Director Rajeev Mishra would be responsible for this.

We have been consistently reporting on the malpractices prevalent at J J for several months and days, aiming for the betterment of the institution. Through our articles, news, and stories, we highlighted this issue. Somewhere this might have helped to put the work regarding J J’s De-Novo status back on track. But those who continued causing hindrances in De-Novo status have managed to hold their high positions. Nevertheless, whispers in the J J campus suggest that this unswerving position of the Supremo will be shaken soon.

Three shocking news have surfaced regarding the J J School of Art. One of them reveals that for the past two years, AICTE has mandated timely submission of compliance reports from J J School of Art officials, but these reports have not been submitted. The compliance report includes details about the institution such as the number of students admitted, among other things. AICTE is contemplating de-accrediting J J School of Art due to non-submission of this report. As an institution with a history spanning 166 years, J J’s reputation extends not only in India but globally. It is a shame that the inaction of Dean Sable might lead to the institution’s de-accreditation. This would mark a disgraceful time in J J’s history, unprecedented in its existence. Unfortunately, the current office bearers have brought about this situation. Consequently, the students are going to suffer greatly. If AICTE revokes recognition, it would result in cancellation of students’ admissions, putting them in a tough situation. Who would be their savior then?

This was just the first shock. The second shocking revelation concerns the admission process at J J School of Art. Despite having an admission limit of 75 students, more students are being admitted through backdoor entry, without any special permission from the higher authorities. These students graduate with a J J tag without the proper process. The criteria for these admissions remain questionable, as it is a grave offence to admit students of one’s choice to a government institution without government authorization. Sources indicate that individuals associated with J J’s chief and his accomplice are involved in such illegal admissions, raising serious questions about their compliance with the rules and regulations. The unauthorized number of students has now exceeded 100, and the authorities need to address this issue promptly. Whether the degrees of these students be declared as void, is the question. As of now, the Education Secretary has already issued a show cause notice in this regard.

Another significant blow comes from opposition MLAs, who have united for J J’s welfare, as per sources. On July 18, they presented an attention notice in the Legislative Assembly to address the serious issues prevailing at J J. They have sent a letter to Art Director outlining the concerns, which include the lack of permanent and full-time teachers in various departments at JJ School of Art. Also, Departments like Sculpture and Modeling, Interior Decoration, Drawing and Painting, Textile Design, Metalwork, and Ceramics are affected due to lack of full-time teachers. Additionally, infrastructural facilities at the institution are inadequate, causing difficulties for the students. Certain courses, such as metal work and studio foundry, have been closed and need to be resumed. Moreover, there is an urgent need to start the student hostel. Various departments have also been closed in the name of renovation. The institution has been asked to provide information regarding all these issues.

The history of JJ School of Art has seen its share of challenges. On November 18th, 2022, students went on strike, and ‘Chinha Art News’ covered the strike extensively through stories and videos. The strike began with a demand for basic facilities, but certain elements swiftly introduced the issue of temporary teachers and objections to the De-Novo process, leading to confusion and a loss of credibility of the students. Ultimately, the strike had to be called off. Nonetheless, ‘Chinha Art News’ continued to convey the legitimate demands of the strike to the Education Secretary and the Minister of Higher Education through news stories and videos. These efforts seem to have borne fruit, as the strike and its consequences were mentioned in the notice that was presented at the assembly session. It can be said that in a way, it is like a show-cause notice.

The government had issued a GR regarding the appointment of teachers on an hourly basis, due to the lack of permanent faculty at the institute. Dean Sable advertised the positions in the newspaper but only appointed five teachers of his interest who had been working in the organization for the past few years. The institute requires about 96 to 100 full time teachers across various departments (Sculpture & Modelling, Interior Decoration, Drawing & Painting, Textile Design, Metal Work, Ceramics etc), but no fresh appointments have been made despite conducting interviews. This situation raises concerns about the dreams of the students from rural areas who aspire to study at this prestigious institute. Those who oppose J J’s De-Novo status for the sake of the rural students, can they not see the lack of teachers as an injustice to those students? Why does nobody question this serious issue? Is it the sole responsibility only of Chinha to ask such questions? We invite all those who opposed De-Novo status to come forward and raise their voice on this matter too, that there is no sufficient full time teaching staff at J J.

Even though it is a delayed action, someone is putting up this matter in the Legislative Assembly. Even though the letter to that effect has been sent to the Art Directorate, it seems that somehow the Art Director is safeguarding Dean Sable. This is evident from the fact that despite incidences of his inefficiency, no action has been taken against Sable by the Art Director. The situation seems to be like both the supremos are working for each other’s benefit.