Meeting fails to resolve Tezpur varsity deadlock, senior-most prof ‘assumes charge’ as acting VC

Tezpur (Assam), Dec 5 (PTI) In a dramatic turn of events at Tezpur University, which has been under complete shutdown for the last seven days, the senior-most faculty member assumed charge as acting vice chancellor suo-motu on Friday, citing the varsity’s laws.

The new ‘acting VC’ Dhruba Kumar Bhattacharyya said he is making arrangements to hold the stalled end-term exams from December 8, though the agitating students declared that the shutdown would continue till their demand, the ouster of incumbent Vice Chancellor Shambhu Nath Singh, is met.

The BoM meeting, however, was called illegal by a section of the faculty.

The situation started changing rapidly after the VC, against whom the agitation has been taking place since mid-September, called for a Board of Management (BoM) meeting online on Thursday afternoon and subsequently appointed Mass Communication professor Joya Chakraborty as the pro-VC.

Chakraborty refused to accept the role, and the Tezpur University United Forum (TUUF), under whose aegis the agitation has been taking place, decided to continue its indefinite shutdown of the central varsity in Assam's Sonitpur district.

The shutdown started on November 29. The protesters have been demanding the removal of Singh over corruption charges.

In late-night developments, the entire university community came together and decided to apply the Tezpur University Act, 1993, suo motu, a senior professor said.

Accordingly, the central university's senior-most faculty member Dhruba Kumar Bhattacharyya assumed charge as the acting VC with immediate effect, he said.

Bhattacharyya, a professor of Computer Science and Engineering, then wrote to the Secretary of the Higher Education Department of the Union Ministry of Education, and apprised him of the latest development, citing the relevant clauses of the Act.

"In view of the long absence of the Vice Chancellor, non-functioning of the Office of the Vice Chancellor and also in view of the current situation prevailing in the campus, to bring normalcy to the campus,...I, Prof Dhruba Kumar Bhattacharyya, Senior-most Professor of the University, hereby assume the charge of the Office of the Vice Chancellor as the Acting Vice Chancellor with effect from 04.12.2025," he said in the letter.

Bhattacharyya also cited the written reply to a query raised by Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi in Lok Sabha on December 1 regarding the ongoing unrest at Tezpur University.

In his reply, Union Minister of State for Education Sukanta Majumdar said: "Central Universities are autonomous institutions established under Acts of Parliament and governed in accordance with the provisions of their respective Acts, Statutes, and Ordinances." As per the Tezpur University Act, if the Office of the VC becomes vacant, the Pro-VC shall perform the duties of the VC, he added.

"It further provides that if the Pro-Vice-Chancellor is not available, the senior-most Professor shall perform the duties of the Vice-Chancellor until a new Vice-Chancellor assumes office or until the existing Vice-Chancellor attends to the duties of his office, as the case may be," Majumdar said in Parliament.

He also said that the Fact-Finding Committee constituted by the Assam Governor has already submitted its report to the Governor, who is the ex-officio Chancellor of Tezpur University.

PTI has accessed all the documents and letters exchanged since the BOM meeting on Thursday.

Bhattacharyya told reporters in the afternoon that he has taken steps to conduct the exams that were supposed to be held from December 3.

“I have as spoken to the deans. In the next step, I'll talk to the heads of the departments. My concern is to hold the end-term examination from December 8," he said.

The students, however, sought to continue the agitation.

"Our shutdown continues until our demands are met. The VC must be removed and an inquiry must be ordered," an agitating student said.

While talking to PTI, a senior professor claimed that everyone associated with the central university was waiting for some positive message from the ministry during the protest period.

“But it remained a mute spectator. In fact, the authorities got involved in an ugly game in collusion with VC Singh and appointed a pro-VC yesterday in the illegal BOM meeting," the professor alleged.

The university fraternity is not ready to accept anything other than the removal of Singh, and as he has been an absentee from the campus for almost three months, an acting VC took charge as per the Act, the faculty member said.

An agitating student said the protest and 'shutdown' will continue unless an enquiry into the alleged corruption and other forms of irregularities of VC is ordered.

"It doesn't end our long-standing movement as our primary demand is a Supreme Court-level enquiry against Prof Singh and his suspension till the results," he added.

The students of this central varsity have shut down all services, including all forms of academic activities, in the campus from November 29 for an indefinite period, forcing the administration to cancel all end-term examinations.

The Tezpur University Teachers' Association (TUTA) and Tezpur University Non-Teaching Employees' Association (TUNTEA) have extended their full support to the agitation, being carried out under the aegis of Tezpur University United Forum (TUUF), thereby making the university non-functional for the last seven days. PTI TR BDC TR NN