The West Bengal government on Thursday tabled in the state Assembly a Bill that seeks to empower the administration to transfer teaching and non-teaching staff from one state university to another.
The West Bengal Universities and Colleges (Administration and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, was introduced by Higher Education Minister Jagannath Chattopadhyay during a special session of the Assembly.
The Bill was approved by the state Cabinet on September 8. It proposes adding a provision to Section 14A of the existing 2017 Act to allow the inter-university transfer of teaching and non-teaching employees as and when required, officials said.
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari described the proposed legislation as “important and necessary” and said its passage would be “historic”.
Explaining the need for the amendment, Adhikari said there was a “ground reality” that necessitated the Bill.
“Several experienced professors will go to the new universities. They will guide these universities on what the infrastructure should be like, how classes can be conducted and how they can be turned into centres of excellence,” he said.
According to Adhikari, experienced teachers could be transferred to new universities established in places such as Jhargram and Cooch Behar to facilitate the exchange of human resources.
The proposed transfer policy has, however, drawn opposition from several teachers’ associations and academics, who have raised concerns over the autonomy of universities and the possibility of selective targeting of teachers.
Teachers, including those associated with Jadavpur University, have opposed the Bill, arguing that it could undermine the autonomy of institutions and affect the job security of faculty members.
They said universities have their own rules, regulations and recruitment norms, and alleged that the proposed legislation sought to impose conditions that they considered illegal.
The Bill was tabled a day after Adhikari led a three-km ‘Gerua Samman Yatra’ from Golpark to Jadavpur and vowed to “uproot” what he described as ‘anti-national’ forces at Jadavpur University.
Addressing a gathering outside the university campus on Wednesday, Adhikari alleged that slogans such as “Kashmir Mange Azadi” and “red salute” were being raised at the institution and said he would not tolerate what he called an insult to the saffron colour.
“I will not tolerate the insult of saffron. I have given a clear message. The West Bengal Chief Minister knows how to wipe out ‘Kashmir Mange Azadi’ and ‘red salute’ from Jadavpur,” he said.
Adhikari described Jadavpur University as the land of Sri Aurobindo and a centre of excellence.
“I have taken a vow that from Jadavpur, the land of Sri Aurobindo and a centre of excellence, I will uproot those who raise ‘Kashmir Mange Azadi’ slogans and those who have supported the ‘kisan’ (sic) movement,” he said.
He also said he would return to the campus to “teach them a lesson through recitation of the Gita and the Hanuman Chalisa”.
“This is the land of Swami Vivekananda, and saffron will remain here,” Adhikari said.
He also announced a three-day Vedic recital programme and appealed to people to participate in it.
Adhikari had led Wednesday’s march dressed in saffron and carrying a saffron flag. BJP workers, monks and Naga Sadhus participated in the procession, during which slogans of ‘Jai Shri Ram’ were raised.
The mobilisation came amid an ongoing political and ideological confrontation at Jadavpur University, where clashes, graffiti and slogan wars between Left-wing student groups and the RSS-affiliated ABVP have intensified in recent days.
A couple of weeks earlier, Adhikari had attended a programme outside the campus where several hundred people sang the full version of ‘Vande Mataram’.
He also criticised the CPI(M)-led Left Front and the Trinamool Congress on Wednesday, accusing them of allowing “nationalism to fade from public consciousness”.