Report on controversy related to Indo-Canadian to release

Toronto, Oct 15 

 A report on a controversy, which erupted after the resignation of an Indo-Canadian from a top post at the University of British Columbia (UBC), will be released on Thursday.

The UBC on Wednesday announced that former British Columbia (B.C.) Supreme Court Justice Lynn Smith's report on the controversy "Summary of fact-finding process and conclusions regarding alleged breaches of academic freedom and other university policies at UBC" will be released on Thursday, The Voice reported.

On August 7, the UBC's Board of Governors announced the sudden resignation of Arvind Gupta as president just after he completed his first year of the five-year tenure.

The officials described Gupta's desire to continue his academic career and leadership roles in the business and research community as the reason for his resignation.

The abrupt resignation and explanation prompted UBC Faculty Association President Mark MacLean to demand "to know the real reasons behind Gupta's stepping down".

On August 10, Sauder School of Business Professor Jennifer Berdahl wrote on her blog, "I believe that part of this outcome is that Arvind Gupta lost the masculinity contest among the leadership at UBC, as most women and minorities do at institutions dominated by white men."

The statement stirred massive controversy and she later even accused the authorities of pressurising her to stop expressing her views on this topic.

On August 17, MacLean demanded full disclosure noting the conflict.

On August 25, the UBC Board of Governors announced that they intend to fully participate in the investigation to ensure the integrity of the process.

Meanwhile, earlier this month, Arvind Gupta was appointed distinguished visiting professor in the University of Toronto's computer science department for the 2015-2016 academic year.