The University of Oxford has announced 38 finalists in the race to be elected the new Chancellor of the University of Oxford. It includes candidates of Indian origin but excludes former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan. Ankur Shiv Bhandari, the first Indian-origin mayor of Bracknell Forest in Berkshire, Nirpal Singh Paul Bhangal, Professor of International Entrepreneurship; and Pratik Tarwadi, a medical professional, will be face-to-face with academicians, politicians, philanthropists and entrepreneurs. Former Conservative Party leader Lord William Hague and former Labor politician Lord Peter Mandelson are among the senior politicians selected, after the selection process deemed Khan ineligible.
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Applications were considered by the Chancellor’s Selection Committee only against the four exclusion criteria set out in the University’s regulations. All applicants have been informed whether their submissions have been successful or not, a university statement said. Under some of the stated University criteria, candidates for the unrestricted role had to demonstrate outstanding achievements in their field and the potential to achieve respect beyond it.
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They also had to prove a deep appreciation for the University’s research and academic mission, its global community, and its ambition to remain a world-class research and teaching university. The university did not specify any reason for individual ineligibility, with some experts indicating that Khan’s criminal conviction in his home country may have caused the former Oxford alumnus to be ineligible.
