Expressing regret over the resignation of IIT Delhi Director K S Shevgaonkar, Chairman of the institute's Board of Governors Vijay P Bhatkar today said he was unaware of any pressure exerted upon Shevgaonkar.
Bhatkar, who received Shevgaonkar's resignation over mail during the weekend and forwarded it to the HRD Ministry, said the Director's relationship with the governing board "has been very nice and good" and he had done a lot of good work on the campus.
"Prof Shevgaonkar has cited personal reasons for resigning. He told me that he has been away from his family in Mumbai for more than three years and wanted to return to IIT Bombay to be with them.
"I tried to convince him that he need not go for his resignation, but he said he has personal reasons to do that," Bhatkar, an eminent scientist himself, told PTI.
Reacting to media reports, he said the Director could not have been under any pressure regarding the clearance of dues of IIT alumni and BJP leader Subramanian Swamy.
"The court order has given a decision and the discussion are going on. The court has instructed to settle the issue with mutual negotiation which is going on. The question of the Director being under pressure does not arise here," he said.
As far as opening a campus is Mauritius is concerned, he said the decision had the approval of the Government and an MoU was also signed in this regard with the involvement of the then HRD Minister M M Pallam Raju.
He said the decision was also brought before the IIT-Delhi Board of Governors for approval.
According to IIT-D official website, under the MoU entered between Mauritius Research Council (MRC) of Mauritius and IIT-D, India had last year agreed to develop and implement an IIT-like institution in Mauritius.
The institute is officially named as International Institute of Technology Research Academy, Mauritius.
