CPN-UML affiliated Nepal Progressive Professors Association (NPPA) has withdrawn its protests after forging a deal over sharing appointments of various posts in universities and University Grants Commission (UGC). With this, the association unlocked administrative departments of five universities.

The NPPA, which had been staging series of protests since August 24 after the government appointed vice-chancellors in several universities, withdrew its protest on Sunday after it was offered two VCs and member-secretary at UGC. The association has forwarded names of Upendra Koirala, Chiranjivi Sharma, Mahesh Raj Poudel and Bharat Raj Pahari for the posts. Koirala is a former vice-chairman at Higher Secondary Education Board, Sharma is chairman at Madan Bhandari Education Foundation, Poudel is former campus chief at Tribhuvan University Central Campus and Pahari is a former dean at Institute of Engineering under TU.

According to NPPA Chairman Yadav Lamichhane, two out of the names are for the VC positions and one for the member-secretary at UGC. He added that agreement was also forged to provide the posts of rector or registrar in three universities, to be vacant in a month, to NPPA.

The NPPA had padlocked administration offices at Tribhuvan University (TU), Purbanchal University (PU), Far-Western University (FWU), Agriculture and Forestry University (AFU) and Nepal Sanskrit University (NSU) claiming that Nepali Congress unilaterally made appointments in universities.

Prime Minister Sushil Koirala, also the Chancellor, had appointed Tirtha Khaniya at TU, Kul Prasad Koirala at NSU, Ghanshyam Lal Das at PU, Bhusan Shrestha at FWU and Ishwari Prasad Dhakal at AFU last week. Dhakal is close to UCPN (Maoist) while the remaining four are leaders of Democratic Professors Association, affiliated to NC.

Lamichhane said that PM Koirala will make the new appointments before leaving for New York to participate in the United Nations General Assembly.