JU officiating VC removed by governor CV Ananda Bose days before retirement

KOLKATA: Officiating vice-chancellor of Jadavpur University, Dr. Bhaskar Gupta, who was due for retirement on March 31, has been removed with immediate effect by West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose, the Raj Bhavan said in a statement.

Gupta had been appointed as the officiating VC by Bose, who serves as the chancellor of state universities. In a statement on March 27, the Governor’s secretariat said, "The authorisation given to Professor Bhaskar Gupta as per order on April 20, 2024, to exercise the powers and perform the duties of the Vice Chancellor of Jadavpur University is withdrawn and shall come into effect immediately."

The notice also stated that the decision had been approved by the Chancellor, and a copy had been forwarded to the Registrar for necessary action. Asked whether Gupta would be made the permanent VC by extending his term, or if a new VC would be appointed based on recommendations from a search committee, Bose had told reporters last week, "You will see whether he retires or re-enters. We will take the appropriate decision at the right moment."

JU functioning without permanent VC for over a year

Jadavpur University has been functioning without a permanent VC for over one-and-a-half years, following the end of former vice-chancellor Suranjan Das’ tenure. Jadavpur University Teachers’ Association (JUTA) general secretary Partha Pratim Roy told PTI, "We recently wrote to the Governor, urging him to end the uncertainty as the prolonged absence of a permanent VC is affecting both administrative and academic functioning at JU.

We hope the impasse ends soon." Meanwhile, Manojit Mondal, head of the English Department and an office-bearer of the TMC-leaning West Bengal College and University Professors’ Association (WBCUPA), criticised Bose’s decision, stating that the same standard had not been applied across all universities. "There are universities where interim VCs appointed by the Chancellor continue in their posts despite their terms having expired," he said. PTI SUS -- MNB