By Chris Ratcliffe
LONDON, Aug 17 (Reuters) – Thousands attended a vigil in central London on Monday for Jason Arday, a former University of Cambridge sociology professor who was found dead on Friday after weeks of intense scrutiny over accusations of plagiarism and other claims.
Arday, once hailed as Cambridge’s youngest Black professor, resigned on August 5 after a former researcher accused him of plagiarism in his PhD thesis. British Prime Minister Andy Burnham described his death as “a tragedy on so many levels.”
Arday denied the allegation but acknowledged making mistakes.
The plagiarism allegations drew huge media interest, leading to questions about other elements of his life, including claims he made about his career, personal life and medical conditions.
His family said on Friday that he had been the victim of misinformation and harassment.
Campaign group Stand up to Racism organised Monday’s vigil to honour Arday. People carried flowers and placards — some reading “Rest In Power Professor Jason Arday” — as they gathered in Trafalgar Square, a historic centre for protest in the British capital.
ARDAY BECAME FOCAL POINT
Before his death, Arday had become a focal point for often polarising commentary about the state of British society, including on race, academic rigour, police interference and media intrusion.
Cambridge University pledged on Wednesday to investigate the circumstances of his appointment and his academic work.
Critics have argued the university was so keen to hire a Black academic that it failed to check Arday’s credentials sufficiently and did not respond appropriately when the plagiarism claims emerged.
On Monday, university Chancellor Chris Smith defended the university’s approach.
“I do believe it is possible to hold to two principles at the same time: to believe in the importance of academic integrity, and where criticisms of plagiarism arise, about any academic, whoever they are, ensure that they are rigorously investigated,” he told the BBC.
“And also to refuse to join in a racist feeding frenzy over a particular academic.”
Britain’s Metropolitan Police apologised to a journalist for investigating a complaint against the journalist after he contacted Arday for comment on the plagiarism accusations a year before the story was made public.
The scrutiny once those accusations were published extended to questioning Arday’s accounts of his childhood struggles with autism and his sporting achievements — including that he ran 30 marathons in 35 days.
“He was being subjected to relentless scrutiny, including ridicule, discrediting absolutely every detail of his life,” Simon Baron-Cohen, a Cambridge professor and supporter of Arday, told BBC radio on Saturday.
He said Arday was a vulnerable person since childhood and deserved safeguarding and support, adding investigations into the case should assign accountability “at lots of levels”.
(Reporting by Chris Ratcliffe, writing by William James; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)
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