The long-time executive producer of the CBC radio program Q, Arif Noorani, has decided to leave the show amid a scandal engulfing former host Jian Ghomeshi.

Last week, Mr. Noorani said he was taking time away from work, citing an investigation the public broadcaster had launched into a 2010 complaint that Mr. Ghomeshi had sexually harassed one of the show's staff.

A CBC spokesman said Mr. Noorani will return to work on Monday, but instead of resuming his post at Q, he will develop a new CBC Radio program. "He's asked to be reassigned to other projects in the department," said the CBC's head of public affairs, Chuck Thompson. "He asked for it and we're supporting him in that request."

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The decision by Mr. Noorani not to return to Q raises further questions about the show's future, and means that it will have new leadership, at least in the interim. Mr. Thompson said an announcement about who will succeed Mr. Noorani at the program is "coming soon."

Mr. Noorani could not immediately be reached for comment, but Mr. Thompson said it is "understandable" that the producer would ask for a new assignment "given all that has transpired over the last couple of weeks."

The CBC fired Mr. Ghomeshi on Oct. 26, three days after lawyers representing the well-known radio host showed two CBC executives video, photographs, text messages and e-mails that showed him causing physical "injury" to a woman, according to the CBC's senior leadership. Since then, at least nine women have alleged they suffered violence, sexual abuse and sexual harassment from Mr. Ghomeshi, who denies that he did anything without consent.

In 2010, a woman then working at Q alleged that Mr. Ghomeshi had sexually harassed her at work, including making violent sexual comments during a meeting three years earlier. She complained to her union representative, who has said in e-mails that he relayed her comments "verbatim" to Mr. Noorani and a CBC Radio manager.

The woman, who spoke to The Globe and Mail on the condition that she remain anonymous, said she met with Mr. Noorani in his office, and he asked what could be done to improve the work environment. In an e-mail, Mr. Noorani told The Globe last week: "At no point was an allegation of sexual harassment brought to my attention."

Before his dismissal, Mr. Ghomeshi had been one of the CBC's most recognizable personalities, and the face of a fast-growing show that reached younger audiences the CBC sometimes finds elusive. The show's name had even changed to Q with Jian Ghomeshi, reflecting his growing star power.

In an interview on Friday, Heather Conway, the CBC's executive vice-president of English services, said the CBC intends to keep Q alive – "under the brand Q, obviously not with [Mr. Ghomeshi's] name attached."

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"We've had support from our international partners. They'd like to see the show continue," Ms. Conway said. "I think we've had shows that have had different hosts that have gone forward in the past and, for the time being, I think that's our operating assumption."

Yet, given the close association between Mr. Ghomeshi and the show's brand, from the Q name to the theme song created by Canadian artist Luke Doucet, Ms. Conway said the CBC has not ruled out any option.

"I'm not going to presume that we're locked into anything or we're throwing anything out," she said. "I think that's kind of a next-chapter question."