By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net,
New Delhi: Jamia Millia Islamia will defend its two students arrested on September 21 from Jamia Nagar area in connection with the Delhi serial bombings on September 13.
Two days after Jamia Nagar encounter on September 19 in which two alleged suspected terrorists were killed, the police launched a combing operation in the area and arrested four persons, of which two, Zia ur Rahman and Mohammad Shakeel, turned out to be B.A. final year and M.A. final year students of the university respectively.
Talking to TwoCircles.net this morning, Jamia’s media coordinator Rakhshanda Jalil said that as they are Jamia students, it is our moral responsibility to defend them until proven guilty.
Yesterday evening Jamia had issued a press release in which it confirmed that two of those arrested on Sunday were its students.
In a letter to Jamia staff, Vice-Chancellor Mushirul Hasan said: “We do, however, confirm that two of the students picked up by the police on Sunday are on the rolls of the University. On the basis of this prima facie information the University will consider initiating disciplinary action against these students.”
But talking to TCN this morning, Jamia’s media coordinator said: “We did not decide about disciplinary action. At that point we decided that they will be suspended pending enquiry.”
She said: “There is a disciplinary committee meeting today. That is only to find out about their admission records and their forms that had been filled in. Since they are Jamia students our stand is that it is our moral responsibility to defend.”
Yesterday’s statement, however, made it clear that no Jamia student was connected with the Jamia Nagar encounter.
“On Saturday, I informed the Minister for Human Resource Development, the Secretary and Joint Secretary of MHRD and the Chairman of the University Grants Commission that the Jamia students had no connection with the unfortunate incidents in Batla House locality,” reads the internal letter by the VC.