Controversy Erupts at Tripura University Over Termination of Long-Serving Contractual Faculty Amid Allegations of Irregular Appointments

By Our Correspondent

Agartala, April 29, 2026

A major controversy has surfaced at Tripura University following the sudden discontinuation of duties of Mr. Sumanta Saha, a contractual Assistant Professor in the Department of Information Technology, after nearly 19 years of continuous service.

According to official communication issued by Registrar (i/c) Prof. Samir Kumar Sil on April 24, 2026, the Head of the IT Department, Prof. Swanirbhar Majumder, was directed not to allow Mr. Saha to continue his duties, citing non-extension of his contractual engagement. The order reportedly came without prior personal intimation to Mr Saha.

Mr. Sumanta Saha had joined the university on January 4, 2008, as a Lecturer (Contractual) in the School of IT and Computer Science, following Advertisement No. F.TU/Reg./Estt./Aptt.-T/01/2007 dated September 17, 2007. His appointment was approved by the university’s first Executive Council meeting held on December 27, 2007. In 2020, his position was re-designated as Assistant Professor (Contractual).

From 2008 until January 7, 2026, Mr. Saha reportedly received uninterrupted annual extensions and continued his academic responsibilities without adverse remarks. However, complications arose in December 2025 when his extension period ended.

Sources indicate that Mr Saha has filed two writ petitions- WPC/09/2025 and WPC/104/2025- against the university, which are currently under judicial consideration.

Notably, he was also issued a call letter on February 27, 2025, to appear for a regular recruitment interview for the post of Assistant Professor under Advertisement No. F.TU/Teach-Rec/2024 dated October 4, 2024.

The controversy has deepened with serious allegations regarding another contractual faculty member, Mr Swarup Nandi, currently serving as Assistant Professor in the same department. It has been alleged that Mr Nandi holds an MTech degree from Karnataka State Open University (KSOU), obtained during 2013–2015, a period when distance education programs of KSOU were reportedly not recognized.

Reference has been made to a statement by Dr Mahendra Nath Pandey in Lok Sabha (Unstarred Question No. 3465, dated August 8, 2016), where it was clarified that KSOU’s distance education courses were not approved from the academic year 2013–14. Additionally, UGC and AICTE guidelines state that MTech degrees through distance mode or study centres are invalid beyond certain periods.

Further allegations claim that Prof Swanirbhar Majumder, as Head of Department, failed to properly verify Mr Nandi’s academic credentials before facilitating his enrollment into a PhD program and later supervising his doctoral research.

It is also alleged that Mr Nandi appeared in the recent recruitment process using the same disputed qualification, raising concerns about procedural lapses within the department.

The situation has triggered demands for a high-level inquiry into the functioning of the IT Department and the university’s recruitment and verification processes. Critics argue that allowing an individual with allegedly invalid qualifications to continue in service, while discontinuing a long-serving faculty member without transparent justification, raises serious questions about governance and fairness.

There are also calls for immediate administrative action, including scrutiny of faculty credentials, accountability of departmental leadership, and intervention by higher authorities to safeguard the academic integrity of the institution.

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