University fires professor at center of sex claims
Shanghai University of Finance and Economics announced a decision on Monday evening to fire an associate professor after finding he had seriously violated professional ethics. The university said it had submitted the decision to the supervision department for approval and had revoked Qian Fengsheng's professional tile and his teaching qualification.
The university said it had set up an investigation team immediately following online claims of sexual assault.
On Friday, a woman, who said she was a student at the university, posted an allegation that a professor had sexually assaulted her.
On Monday, she said on Weibo that she had reported the matter to local police.
Following the allegations, Qian is said to have resigned from the board of at least four listed companies.
China National Building Material Co Ltd said on Monday morning that its board had received a resignation letter from Qian, who had decided to quit for personal reasons. It said that as the resignation would mean the company would fail to meet the requirements for companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, it would not take effect until a new independent director was appointed.
Shanghai Tongji Science & Technology Co Ltd, which is listed on Shanghai Stock Exchange, later made a similar announcement. Besides quitting his role as an independent director, Qian also asked to resign from other positions in the company, including chairman of the audit committee, member of the remuneration and appraisal committee and member of the nomination committee.
Shanghai Tofflon Sci & Tech Co Ltd and Shanghai Hanbell Precise Machinery Co Ltd, both listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, made similar announcements on Sunday night.
According to Wind Data Service, Qian is also an independent director of Northeast Electric Development Co Ltd, listed in the Hong Kong and Shenzhen stock markets, and Shenhao Information Technology Co Ltd, a Hangzhou-based company that is seeking to go public.