AU V-C Prasada Reddy, Registrar Stephen resign from posts

The Vice-Chancellor (V-C) of Andhra University, (AU) Prasada Reddy, and Registrar James Stephen have reportedly resigned from their positions in Visakhapatnam on 28 June 2024 in the wake of the change of the government in State. Kishore Babu took over as the in-charge registrar. After the TDP coming to power, many of those nominated by the previous YSRCP government quit their posts and there was a demand for the immediate resignation of Prasad Reddy as he was stamped as a staunch supporter of former Chief Minister Y S Jaganmohan Reddy. After the debacle of the YSRCP in the elections, pressure started mounting on Prasad Reddy to quit the post.

On June 27, supporters of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Jana Sena Party (JSP), and the Telugu Nadu Students Federation (TNSF), the student wing of the TDP, staged a protest at the administrative block of AU in Visakhapatnam and demanded the resignation of the V-C, Prof P V G D Prasada Reddy.

The protesters accused Prof Reddy of failing to remove the portraits of YSRCP president and former Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy from his chambers, despite a change in state government.

The demonstrators alleged that over the past five years, Prof Reddy was involved in multiple irregularities, effectively turning the university into a YSRCP office. They claimed there was extensive misuse of funds, adversely affecting students from SC, ST, and BC communities.

A senior Professor of the Computer Science & Systems Engineering Department, Prof Reddy assumed the role of Vice Chancellor on July 19, 2019, with his first term ending on November 24, 2023. He was reappointed on January 17, 2024, for another three-year term.

During his tenure leading up to his resignation, AU V-C Prasada Reddy faced criticism for decisions such as cutting down numerous trees, including rare species and reducing the green cover in Visakhapatnam. Moreover, opposition parties accused him of converting the university into a hub for the ruling party. Despite these controversies, his efforts also brought national recognition to the university.

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