By TCN News,
Aligarh: Listing out details of constitutional provisions and judicial position of the cases related to AMU’s minority status, Mushtaq Ahmad, eminent advocate in the Supreme Court of India, dwelt upon the provisions of University Amendment Act 1981 and said, the provision 5(2)(c) clearly provides the basis for this status, which only needs to be realized by the Judiciary.
“Several appeals have so far been filed in the Supreme Court against the judgment of the Allahabad High Court. A single judge bench of the Allahabad High Court, while hearing the write petition of some majority community students, who were opposed to the decision of the university to reserve 50 % seats for Muslims in some courses, decided against the University’s stand,” Ahmad, who is presently officiating secretary of Delhi’s India Islamic Cultural Centre, said.
He was delivering a lecture on ‘Minority Status of AMU: Judicial Response’ at Sir Syed Hall (North), Aligarh Muslim University (AMU).
The MHRD also endorsed the reservation policy of the university but the High Court’s verdict halted its application, he said, according to a release from Dr Rahat Abrar, AMU PRO said.
Ahmad said that another bench of Allahabad High Court upheld the earlier verdict after hearing University’s appeal and went to the extent of quashing the Act of 1981 itself. The university went to the Supreme Court of India in appeal against the verdict of the High Court, and the case is waiting to be heard for Supreme Court’s final verdict.
Earlier, Dr Arshi Khan, Provost of the Hall, welcomed the guest and presented his introduction. Highlighting important anecdotes related to the issue, Dr Khan said that the Judiciary and Parliament needed to consider the origin, nature, structure and purpose of the establishment of the AMU in a rational manner and not by the narrow interpretation of the law. He said that the AMU is a result of the efforts made by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan and his associates, a large number of who belonged to the Muslim community. He said that the fact that Sir Syed and his associates constituted a Committee for the Advancement of Muslims’ Education and collected the required fund for this project, vindicates claim that AMU is an institution of national importance with a minority character, the release added.
Dr Khan said that conditions leading to the establishment of Mohammedan Anglo Oriental College, which later transformed into the Aligarh Muslim University in 1920, cannot be ignored while determining its original character, the release added.