By order of the Minister of Education and Science, Krasimir Valchev, the rector of Thracian University has been retired. On June 2nd, Professor Yarkov turned 65 and was forced to leave the rector’s office, to which access in recent months had been heavily restricted by him through a special badge system. But besides no longer managing the university, Yarkov will also no longer teach. It seems unlikely that this decision was entirely his own, as he explains in a dedicated video message to teachers and students.
Most probably, he was politely advised to fully step back by the minister, who is unlikely to want further reputation damage linked to his association with Dobri Yarkov.
Before dedicating himself to hunting, fishing, or other hobbies, the rector had apparently decided that his trusted associate would temporarily take his place. According to university sources, this was supposed to be his favorite, Darina Zaimova, one of the few remaining in the rector’s team after his purge of other deputies. Evidently, in a self-overestimating move and in violation of the university’s regulations, Yarkov summoned the General Assembly through its chair, Professor Dimitar Petkov, for June 13, with the first item on the agenda being a partial election of a new rector.
He presumably believed that this move would succeed again, as it did in 2023, when he submitted his resignation to the Assembly and was immediately re-elected as the sole candidate for another term—an act that blatantly violated democratic academic autonomy.
Through this authoritarian act, Yarkov secured the right to govern for another two years, which would not have been possible had he completed his first term, mainly because aging restrictions would have prevented him from running again.
It has become clear that Minister Krasimir Valchev was informed about the convening of the General Assembly on June 13 and about Yarkov’s decision to report the election of the new rector directly to him. He intervened to prevent this move, which violates the university’s Regulations on Work Procedures and significantly restricts professors’ right to run for rector, as ten days is an extremely short period for them to prepare their management platforms.
The minister’s interference is evident from the subsequent announcement of a new General Assembly, this time scheduled for July 9.
As of today, Minister Valchev has appointed Professor Rumen Binev as interim rector. A month ago, Binev resigned from his position as Deputy Rector for Administrative and Management Activities under duress, forced to do so by Dobri Yarkov. During a phone call, the professor barely managed to contain tears and promised to speak to “Za Istina,” which we hope he will do soon in his new administrative role.
Within the next six months, the General Assembly is tasked with electing the next rector, who will serve until 2027 to complete the current term.
The “Yarkov” era likely would not have ended so ignominiously if “Za Istina” had not publicized his authoritarian behavior as rector over the past year through a series of articles.
The reason for focusing on the rector of Thracian University was the plagiarism report submitted to the Ministry of Education and Science by Associate Professor Lazar Lazarov. Lazarov was disciplinarily dismissed by Yarkov from his position as dean of the Veterinary Medicine Faculty and is now pursuing court cases to recover his position. The District Court in Stara Zagora ruled in his favor at first instance, and a second trial is scheduled for June 10 in the Regional Court.
Yarkov’s case—who reportedly earned his academic title of “professor” through the theft of someone else’s intellectual work—has become a full-fledged saga, according to Lazarov’s claims.
This saga revealed serious distortions within the education authority, which openly shielded the rector of Thracian University, especially during Minister Galin Tsokov’s tenure. It is detailed thoroughly in “Za Istinata” (“For the truth”) exposing institutional misunderstandings and legal violations.
The first report by Associate Professor Lazar Lazarov, submitted to Galin Tsokov, did not result in a ruling from the Commission on Academic Ethics, which is the only body authorized to do so. The former dean of the Veterinary Medicine Faculty submitted a second report, this time to Minister Krasimir Valchev. Within the legally prescribed timeframe, the Commission again failed to reach a decision.
“Za Istinata” (“For the truth”) was shown information indicating that it was extremely difficult to identify the arbitrators who should produce reports on whether plagiarism existed in Dobri Yarkov’s textbooks.
The reason is that the arbitrators were sought among the “right” qualified persons within academic circles, while inconvenient candidates were not even invited.
There were also opinions that there had been attempts at influence or even pressure on the arbitrators. One arbitrator was replaced during the investigation, but “Za Istina” chose not to make these facts publicly available so as not to interfere with the objective decision of the Commission on Academic Ethics. The minister used the lawfully granted right to extend its deadline by another month.
To prove that there were no dependencies on the former rector, the new leadership of Thracian University should request a full audit of Dobri Yarkov’s term. This review would determine whether there were any financial abuses involving funds from the budget and European programs.
