PSTU Pro-Vice-Chancellor Accused of Citation Manipulation Ahead of Appointment

Serious allegations of citation manipulation have been raised against Professor Dr , Pro-Vice-Chancellor of (PSTU) and a professor of the Department of Entomology.

According to the allegations, shortly before his appointment as Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Dr Hemayet Jahan added research articles authored by other scholars to his personal profile. As a result, his citation count reportedly rose abnormally to nearly 2,000. However, after his appointment, the earlier profile disappeared, and his currently active profile shows only 326 citations.

In academic evaluation, citation count is widely regarded as a key indicator of a researcher’s impact and credibility. It plays a significant role in faculty recruitment, promotion, and the allocation of research grants. Consequently, allegations of artificially inflating citations are not uncommon in the academic world.

Sources indicate that following media reports on similar citation fraud allegations against Professor Belal Hossain, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of , Dr Hemayet Jahan removed other researchers’ articles from his own Google Scholar profile.

An investigation reveals that in the aftermath of the July 2024 mass uprising, the interim government prioritised strong research credentials—alongside teaching experience—when appointing vice-chancellors and pro-vice-chancellors at public universities. During this period, allegedly in an effort to strengthen his candidature, Dr Hemayet Jahan artificially inflated his citation count by adding publications authored by other researchers. Records show that on 23 September 2024, his Google Scholar profile displayed 1,960 citations. At present, that number stands at just 326.

Google Scholar profiles are managed by researchers themselves, and publications must be added manually or approved by the profile owner. It is alleged that articles by researchers from various countries with similar names were added to Dr Hemayet Jahan’s profile. In particular, most publications of Australian researcher Sayka Jahan (S. Jahan) were reportedly uploaded to his account. Based on these citations, Dr Hemayet Jahan was appointed Pro-Vice-Chancellor on 27 October 2024.

In his initial response, Dr Hemayet Jahan described the matter as a result of an “automatic system.” He said, “Due to the automatic system, additional citations may have been added. When I later noticed other researchers’ names, steps were taken to correct the issue.” He further stated, “For a long time, I did not closely monitor the increase in citations on my profile, which is how others’ articles were added.”

Commenting on the issue, Professor Dr of Bangladesh Agricultural University said, “Many researchers keep Google Scholar’s automatic update enabled, which can result in others’ articles being added. However, whenever a researcher logs into their account, they can clearly see whether foreign citations have been included. In many cases, the system also prompts the user to confirm whether a suggested article belongs to them. Retaining others’ citations for the purpose of securing positions or titles is a serious wrongdoing. If Google Scholar finds concrete evidence of such manipulation, it can deactivate the profile.”

Veteran researcher and former Director General of the , Dr , said, “Such a dramatic increase in citations within a short period is highly questionable. Researchers who engage in this practice are often described as ‘pseudo-scientists.’ The individual’s career should be formally evaluated. If it is proven that someone obtained a position or title through manipulated citations, there are provisions under government rules for demotion.”

Notably, this is not the first controversy involving Dr Hemayet Jahan. Although he was a zoology student at a college, he was appointed to PSTU’s Department of Entomology in 2006. According to the recruitment circular, he did not apply for the Entomology post; instead, he applied for a position in the Agroforestry Department. Furthermore, shortly after his appointment, he was reportedly appointed as personal secretary to then Vice-Chancellor Dr Abdul Latif Masum, allegedly due to political influence and close affiliation.

Although he previously served as General Secretary of UTAB, an organisation aligned with BNP-leaning teachers, Dr Hemayet Jahan later became embroiled in controversy in 2025 following his participation in a programme organised by Islami Chhatra Shibir, which reportedly caused friction with BNP-aligned faculty members and officials at the university.