The Dean of Law Faculty at South Asian University and former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) professor Yogesh Kumar Tyagi is likely to be the new Vice-Chancellor of Delhi University, according to sources.
While Professor Tyagi’s name has been finalised, sources from the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development said, a nod from President Pranab Mukherjee, who is the Visitor of the University, is still awaited.
Stating that Professor Tyagi is likely to join on February 11, a DU professor said: “Unless the President gives his nod, nothing can be said with certainty. The name of JNU V-C M. Jagdeesh Kumar came as a surprise as the frontrunner was someone else.”
Professor Tyagi holds a PhD in legal studies from JNU and LLM in legal studies from Columbia University. The other frontrunner for the coveted post is DU Professor Bidyut Chakrabarty, who, it is learnt, allegedly enjoys the backing of the Ministry.
However, a number of women’s organisations had opposed Professor Chakrabarty candidature and even wrote to President Pranab Mukherjee in December highlighting that charges of sexual harassment levelled against him by an employee of Gandhi Bhawan in 2007.
The search-cum-selection committee, comprising UGC chairman Ved Prakash, former CAG Vinod Rai and former chairman of the Union Public Service Commission D. P. Agrawal, had in a meeting in December shortlisted four names — JNU Professor with School of Life Sciences Rameshwar Nath Kaul Bamezai, Professor Tyagi, former IIT professor and UPSC member Hemchand Gupta and Professor Chakraborty.
The appointment of the DU V-C has been pending for three months since Dinesh Singh demitted office on October 28.
Among the tasks cut out for the incumbent, a number of other important appointments like that of the Principals of Hindu College, Shri Ram College of Commerce and Hansraj College have to be decided soon.
