The director of the Indian Institute of Management Raipur, Ram Kumar Kakani resigned in July 2025 which is raising questions about the autonomy of the institute.
He stepped down two years before his term ended. In his resignation letter and earlier communications with the ministry of education , he said that the board of governors led by its chairperson had began exercising powers that belongs to the director under law.
The conflict got highlighted over a disciplinary action against a faculty member. The institute had suspended an associate professor over charges of academic misconduct. The professor challenged the suspension in court and the Chhattisgarh high court struck it down by saying that the board ,not the director , must approve such actions.
He also pointed out that some HR policies used at IIM Raipur dated back to before the 2017 Act and were inconsistent with it. He said that this mismatch was deducting his professional space to function freely.
This is not the first time a head of an IIM has resigned over clashes with the board. In the past five years, two directors of IIM Calcutta also stepped down over similar governance disputes.
Kakani’s resignation raises larger questions about how power should be shared in IIMs. The IIM Act of 2017 was created to give these institutions autonomy while also ensuring accountability.
People are saying there is a need for clearer rules and stronger checks so that directors and boards don’t end up in constant conflict. For now the challenge will be to maintain stable leadership while solving the legal and structural problems that are currently rubbing .
