A professor officiating as the authorised vice-chancellor of Jadavpur University has been sacked over email by the Bengal governor four days before he isto retire.

“What bankruptcy of ideas could have prompted one to remove a vice-chancellor three (four) days before his retirement? He (the governor) is trying to shut down Jadavpur University,” state education minister Bratya Basu said.

The email, signed by a deputy secretary in the governor’s secretariat and addressed to JU registrar Indrajit Banerjee, says: “The authorisation given to Professor Bhaskar Gupta as per order... dated 20th April, 2024, to exercise the powers and perform the duties of the Vice-Chancellor of Jadavpur University is withdrawn and shall come into effect immediately.”

The communication, emailed to the registrar around 5pm on Thursday, said the order had been issued “with the approval of the Hon’ble Chancellor”.

Governor C.V. Ananda Bose is the ex-officio chancellor of state universities.

Late into Friday morning, Gupta had no clue that he was no longer the JU vice-chancellor. The professor of electronics and telecommunications engineering arrived at the university at 11am in the car assigned to the vice-chancellor.

He headed to the venue of an event at the production department that he was to inaugurate in his capacity as VC, unaware that he was no longer one.

“Had I known that I had already been removed, I wouldn’t have gone there. I wouldn’t have taken the car assigned to a VC,” Gupta said.

“At 11.30am, I received a call from the registrar telling me that I must reach Aurobindo Bhavan (the university’s administrative headquarters) immediately. When I arrived there, he informed me about the removal.”

Gupta added: “I could have been informed earlier, which would have spared me the embarrassment.”

Registrar Banerjee said he had seen the email after arriving on the campus on Friday morning.

“I did not receive any call or message from the Raj Bhavan alerting me about the email,” Banerjee told The Telegraph.

Gupta sat on the sofa opposite the VC’s chair in the VC’s office as he was shown the email.

At 11.45am, Gupta was heard telling a group of bank officials who had come to meet him that he was no longer the VC.

“When I was due to retire on March 31, why was this email sent? I have some self-respect!” he told this newspaper.

Gupta, authorised to act as the VC in April 2024, retires on Monday having reached 65, the retirement age for a teacher at a state-aided university.

Last week, Gupta informed the state education department about his imminent retirement. The department passed the information on to the chancellor on Wednesday, a government official said.

Gupta features at the top of a panel of three candidates -- drawn up by a Supreme Court-appointed search committee and set in order of preference by chief minister Mamata Banerjee -- for the post of a full-term VC for JU, an education department official said on Friday.

A full-term VC can hold office till 70.

“A file was sent to the Raj Bhavan in late November last year. According to the procedure set by the apex court, the chancellor is to pick a name from the panel, set in order of preference by the chief minister,” the official said.

“Since the chancellor has appointed full-term VCs for 17 other state-aided universities over the past few months following the procedure, he was expected to do the same at JU.”

Governor Bose’s mobile was switched off. Emails sent to him seeking his response did not bring any response.

The education department official said: “On Wednesday, we sent the chancellor’s office a reminder so that he appointed the full-term VC immediately from the panel.”

In an order on July 8 last year, the Supreme Court had said the chancellor would appoint full-term VCs only according to the guidelines.