JNU prof Rakesh Bhatnagar appointed Banaras Hindu University vice-chancellor

Bhatnagar, who was VC of Kumaon University from 2012 to 2013, has been teaching at JNU for two decades and his areas of interest include molecular biology of infectious diseases, recombinant vaccine development and programmed cell death in prokaryotes.

author-image
Neha Singh
Updated On
New Update
JNU prof Rakesh Bhatnagar appointed Banaras Hindu University vice-chancellor

JNU professor appointed as the vice-chancellor of the Banaras Hindu University

JNU professor Rakesh Bhatnagar has been appointed as the vice-chancellor of the Banaras Hindu University (BHU), the HRD Ministry said on Saturday.

Bhatnagar, who was VC of Kumaon University from 2012 to 2013, has been teaching at JNU for two decades and his areas of interest include molecular biology of infectious diseases, recombinant vaccine development and programmed cell death in prokaryotes.

President Ram Nath Kovind, who is the Visitor to the university, approved Bhatnagar’s appointment this week, a senior HRD Ministry official said.

He will take charge from BHU Registrar Neeraj Tripathi, who had been holding the additional charge of the top post since October last year.

Bhatnagar’s predecessor, Girish Chandra Tripathi, had gone on leave two months before his tenure came to an end, following a ruckus on campus in September last year.

Also Read: NCERT Drops ‘Anti-Muslim’ from Chapter on Gujarat Riots in Class 12 political science textbook

The development came amid indications from HRD Ministry sources that the central government was upset with the manner in which the former vice-chancellor had handled the entire episode, including a protest by women students following an incident of alleged harassment.

The ruckus started when a number of students, including women, and two journalists were injured in a baton-charge by the police after a protest against an alleged eve-teasing incident turned violent in BHU, one of the 43 central universities in the country.

JNU Banaras Hindu University Rakesh Bhatnagar