The University of Chemical Technology and Metallurgy (HTMU) has found itself in a deadlock - the General Assembly has elected a new rector, but according to the Ministry of Education and Science (MES), the university must continue to be managed by the interim rector, reports "Offnews".
The story begins with the coming to power of the government of Rumen Radev, when the previous rector of HTMU, Prof. Dr. Eng. Senya Terzieva-Zhelyazkova, left her post prematurely to become Deputy Minister of Education. In May, Prof. Dr. Eng. Dancho Danalev took her place as interim. The key here is that he can hold this position until the election of a new rector, but for no more than six months.
On July 21, the General Assembly of the Bulgarian Technical University actually held such an election and adopted a decision by which Prof. Nikolay Karev was elected as the rector of the Bulgarian Technical University for the remainder of the term 2023-2027. And here the case should have ended under normal circumstances.
However, Danalev is challenging the election before the Administrative Court - Sofia City.
The position of the Ministry of Education
In a letter to Prof. Karev dated August 12, the Ministry of Education stated that the decision of the General Assembly to elect a rector is an administrative act and when it is contested, as a rule its implementation is suspended. Therefore, according to the ministry, the election of Karev has not yet given rise to the necessary legal consequences. That is, the MES accepts that Danalev continues to be acting as interim rector.
In the meantime, however, the Administrative Court allows for preliminary execution of the election - that is, even though the case for its legality has not yet been concluded, the decision can be provisionally executed.
SAC
On September 29, the Supreme Administrative Court canceled the preliminary execution. In this way, it accepted that there was an appointed interim rector under the Higher Education Act, who had all the powers of a rector and had no limitation on his representative power. Just a day later, the MES notified Danalev and Karev that they accepted the former as still acting rector.
However, Karev did not accept this logic. According to him, the condition was already met on July 21, because the General Assembly actually held an election and indicated it. The Order does not say until the election enters into force, nor until the court cases are concluded, but simply until a new rector is elected.
According to Karev, the Supreme Administrative Court has stopped the possibility of the election decision being implemented in advance, but has not erased the fact that an election was held.
The situation raises two questions - who should be the rector at the moment and why Karev's election is causing such a stir.