International
oi-Amit Vasudev
James
Tooley,
the
vice-chancellor
of
the
University
of
Buckingham
in
the
United
Kingdom,
has
been
suspended
following
allegations
of
an
affair
with
a
woman
from
Hyderabad.
According
to
The
Times,
Tooley
is
alleged
to
have
assisted
the
woman
with
her
university
fees.
Tooley.
Image
courtesy:
https://x.com/james_tooley
The
allegations
surfaced
after
Tooley’s
estranged
wife,
Cynthia,
reportedly
provided
copies
of
diaries
believed
to
have
been
written
by
the
woman
and
handed
to
Tooley.
The
suspension
took
effect
in
October,
though
the
matter
has
only
recently
come
to
light.
Tooley
assumed
the
role
of
vice-chancellor
in
2020.
The
woman
initially
claimed
she
was
18
when
she
met
Tooley
and
entered
a
sexual
relationship
with
him
three
years
later.
However,
she
later
retracted
her
statement,
asserting
that
she
was
25
when
the
relationship
began,
as
reported
by
The
Times.
The
relationship
allegedly
started
while
Tooley
was
working
on
a
project
in
Hyderabad
to
establish
low-cost
private
schools
for
disadvantaged
communities.
The
affair
is
said
to
have
ended
in
2019.
On
11
October,
Cynthia
notified
the
university
administration
about
Tooley’s
alleged
affair.
She
also
made
various
accusations,
including
reporting
a
“suspicious
object” at
Tooley’s
official
residence
in
Buckingham.
Police
subsequently
seized
a
junior
air
rifle
from
his
home,
but
no
further
investigation
followed.
Cynthia,
who
is
of
Nigerian
origin
and
was
awarded
an
MBE
in
2017,
married
Tooley
in
2022.
Tooley
has
categorically
dismissed
the
accusations,
describing
them
as
“baseless.”
The
allegations
are
currently
under
investigation
by
senior
counsel
Joseph
O’Brien
KC,
who
is
expected
to
deliver
his
findings
before
Christmas.
