After losing a students' referendum on the issue, Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha nominee Sugata Bose today said he had been advised by Amartya Sen not to take any hasty decision on stepping down as chairperson of the Mentor Group of Presidency University.
"Amartya Sen, who is an adviser to the Mentor Group, has advised me not to take any hasty decision and think carefully before taking any step," Bose told PTI here.
He said they had also discussed other examples of best governance practices in Kolkata like the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) which had Pranab Mukherjee, when he was an MP, as the chairman of the governing council.
"They were no problems during his tenure there. On the other hand, the institute benefited from his experience and talent," said Bose, who is also a Gardiner Professor of Oceanic History and Affairs at Harvard University.
Last week, Presidency University's student body, the Independent Consolidation, had held a referendum on whether he should continue as chairperson of Mentor Group after joining politics.
Around 1,208 students had voted in favour of Bose's resignation, while only 316 students said he could continue holding the post.
The result would not be binding on the authorities as it only reflected the choice of the students.
Presidency University's Students' Council leaders said they would meet Governor M K Narayanan, who is also the chancellor of the University, and request him to ask Bose to step down as they wanted no politics inside the campus.
