Students of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv took to the streets in Kyiv on the afternoon of April 1 to protest against the current rector, Volodymyr Bugrov.
This was reported by a correspondent of Suspilny.
KNU students protest in Kyiv against the current rector, April 1, 2026. Social/Stanislav Svyryd
The participants in the action demanded a public response from the university administration to the scandals related to the university's leadership.
“We came out to protest against the rector's actions, to have him suspended for the duration of the investigation,” Mykhailo noted.
“Bugrov is a corrupt person. This should be the main reason for this action, not the incident in the 105th auditorium. He steals money to purchase products for cadets,” says another participant in the action, Bohdan.
KNU students protest in Kyiv against the current rector, April 1, 2026. Social/Stanislav Svyryd
What preceded the student protests?
Student Parliament representative Ivan Lazorenko said that tensions at the university have been going on for several years and have intensified after several scandals.
According to him, on March 20, a sexual video appeared on an anonymous Telegram channel, allegedly showing a man who looks like the rector.
KNU students protest in Kyiv against the current rector, April 1, 2026. Social/Stanislav Svyryd
After that, representatives of the student government checked the audience with video and allegedly discovered intimate items there.
“We contacted the university administration to comment on this, but did not receive a response. We are here to defend the right of students to be heard, to receive a public response, to have the video examined. Also, to have the rector suspended for the duration of the investigation,” said the acting chairman of the student parliament.
The rector's reaction
Rector Volodymyr Bugrov rejected the accusations and stated that he was not going to justify himself based on information from anonymous Telegram channels.
He believes that such informational interventions may be an attempt to destabilize the situation at the university on the eve of the rector's elections and the admissions campaign.
“Tomorrow, an anonymous Telegram channel will call me a necrophiliac. I should not make excuses for something that has no official confirmation. There is no statement from those whom I allegedly raped or pressured. I have no conflict with students. There are inadequacies between certain leaders of the student parliament and the administration,” Bugrov said.
Later, the rector came out to the students and invited them into his office. He stated that he had no intention of resigning.
“If I win the appeal court Rector Volodymyr Bugrov filed an appeal because he disagrees with the decision of the Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv, which fined him for allegedly false information in the declaration. The court believes that he should have indicated the car he used, but Bugrov himself says that there was no violation and asks to review this decision. , then I will file for the rectors. If I lose, I will leave early,” he added.
In February 2022, an anonymous Telegram channel claimed that the rector of KNU had sex with female students. At the time, Bugrov denied the accusations, and the university called such messages an “information attack” on the educational institution.