In the eye of a storm, Viswa Bharati VC Sushanta Dattagupta today attended a vice chancellors conference here even as back in the campus in West Bengal a section of students and faculty continued with the demand for his removal.
Delhi University Vice Chancellor Dinesh Singh, who has lately come in for criticism for announcing the implementation of the choice based credit transfer system "in haste", also attended the meet inaugurated by President Pranab Mukherjee.
As Dattagupta participated in the deliberations, tension continued to run high in the campus in Shanti Niketan with the agitating students, staff and faculty of the Viswa Bharati threatening to intensify their agitation.
"We would continue to intensify the agitation and shut down the campus if the VC does not step down soon," said one of the university's faculty members.
The HRD Ministry has decided to sent a fact-finding team to the varsity to probe the charges of administrative irregularities and other allegations against Dattagupta.
Some faculty members questioned the VC's decision to attend the conference in Delhi when there was deep resentment brewing against him in the university. They alleged that the VC has been staying put in Kolkata ever since there has been demand for his removal.
On the other hand, DU VC Singh, who has had a controversial tenure so far and is purported to be not in good terms with the ministry since the choice based credit transfer scheme was announced, is understood to have given a presentation at the conference.
The HRD Ministry had last month put a spoke in his plans to introduce the scheme from the coming academic session, raising questions about the preparations made and seeking a clarification from him.
Singh has been at the centre of controversy ever since the row over the four year undergraduate programme (FYUP) broke out, with HRD ministry directing him to roll back the programme in June last year as it had no approval from the President who is the Visitor to central universities.
The ministry had also forwarded to the President a letter written by CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury highlighting alleged irregularities by the VC in the varsity's functioning.
