Universities say citizenship scandal damages academy’s reputation

The controversy over a recommendation to grant Latvian citizenship to Indian citizen Divya Kanana Vishwanath has damaged the reputation of the Latvian Academy of Sciences, university representatives say, LSM reports.

Seventy-five academy members have asked its president, Ivars Kalviņš, to publish the full factual and documentary basis for support and recommendation letters signed by him and academy secretary-general Baiba Rivža. The letters backed Vishwanath’s citizenship application. The Latvian parliament later repealed the special law granting her citizenship.

Last week, the academy’s presidium concluded that Kalviņš had acted in good faith, relying on information submitted to him. Several state institutions are now involved in clarifying the circumstances.

The academy’s general assembly is scheduled for November 26, when members are also expected to discuss whether Kalviņš should leave his post.

University of Latvia rector Gundars Bērziņš said the affair had caused significant reputational damage to Latvian science and created a negative impression of the value of Latvian citizenship.