Reacting to the attorney-general’s report to the Union government that the Delhi-based Jamia Millia Islamia university was not a minority institution as it was created by an Act of Parliament, students and faculty members of the university urged political parties to stop discussing the status of Jamia for political gain.
A student activist in Jamia, Asad Asraf, told this newspaper that everyone in the university knows that it was created by an Act of Parliament and was not a minority institution, but the political parties raise the issue according to their political compulsions. “Stop politics of appeasement in name of religion with country’s premier institution. To appease a community, some political parties gave minority status and for the same, others talk of removing the status. If they are really concerned about the minorities, it can be done without the minority status of an education institute. Instead of giving minority status, the government must ensure proper and quality education all sections of the society, including the minorities,” said Mr Asraf.
A senior faculty member said that party in power must stop playing politics over the university’s status and the Centre should instead work to upgrade the standard of education. “Why is the party in power concerned only about the minority institutes If they upgrade any institute, it will benefit the society at large. For larger public benefit, the government in power must work only for larger goal instead of scoring small political points over the status of a university,“ the Jamia faculty member said.
A section of Jamia students feels that the NDA government should provide equal opportunities to them and there should be no interference in autonomy.
A Jamia research scholar said that the Central government should not interfere in autonomy of any institution, including Jamia. “Everyone else in the world is trying to uplift and empower sections of society, the government provides privileges and there’s nothing wrong in it. Similarly, by giving minority status to Jamia, the government had provided that opportunity to a section of society, but if the BJP government really wants to remove the status, then it should make an arrangement that these sections of society should get equal opportunities to excel in every sphere of life,” he added.
The students pointed out that due to minority status they face discrimination wherever they go after passing out from Jamia.
