Mumbai: The director of Mumbai University’s Centre for Distance and Online Education (CDOE), Shivaji Sargar, has sparked a controversy after conducting a Satyanarayan puja and havan in his office on the Kalina campus last week, raising questions about administrative priorities amid ongoing student grievances.Activists from Maharashtra Navnirman Vidyarthi Sena (MNVS), under Amit Thackeray, have criticised him for allegedly neglecting students’ issues while being engaged in religious rituals.Nitin Nanaware, from MNVS, alleged that there are continuous and serious administrative lapses at the CDOE. “The results of MCom Semester III (Accounts – NEP) were declared on June 11, and the form submissions for ATKT exams with late pay started the very next day. Students were not given time. There was also a paper leak this year from the centre. There are so many pressing issues, which are yet to be addressed,” said Nanaware, adding that the puja was not even organised officially by the staff or the union.A university spokesperson said the puja was a voluntary goodwill gathering, marking the beginning of the academic year. “The centre functioned normally and our focus remains on serving our students,” said the official.
