By TCN Staff Reporter
Adding fuel to the controversy over the alleged humiliation of AMU vice chancellor Lt. Gen (retd) Zameeruddin Shah by Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani and her statement that she would close down AMU centres, sources have confirmed to Twocircles.net that a delegation of Kerala ministers and MP’s had almost the same experience in a meeting held in Thiruvananthapuram on January 14.
“She was cut and dry about the fact that she wouldn’t disburse any fund to develop the Malappuram centre into a full-fledged university as planned by the UPA government,” said a the personal assistant of an MP who attended the meeting in Thiruvananthapuram.
The meeting was attended by Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, Minister for Minorities Welfare Manjalamkuzhi Ali, Minister for Education PK Abdu Rabb and IUML MPs P V Abdul Wahab and E T Mohammed Basheer.
“Whatever the centre got was illegally done by former UPA Government. We are going to close down the Aligarh Muslim University itself as it is non productive in terms of education,” the source said quoting the HRD Minister.
While the Chief Minister brought her attention towards the land allocation and efforts taken up by Kerala to materialise the Malappuram Centre, Smriti Irani asked Oommen Chandy to run the centre at state government’s expense.
“The centre will go on with the present facilities and present strength. If you want to develop you take it over and develop it into a university or bring it under the Central University of Kerala, functioning in Kasargod. I will extend the possible help,” the minister told the delegation while she was shown the detailed project report for the comprehensive development of the Malappuram centre.
“The minister was blunt. While the delegation raised various demands, she couldn’t help and said, ‘I have invited you for breakfast and you are bombarding me’. The meeting was finally dispersed,” the source said.
Meanwhile, sources with AMU Malappuram Centre confirmed Twocircles that the HRD Minister insulted the AMU VC Zameeruddin Shah during the meeting, held in Delhi on January 8. “It seems that there were planned attempts to ward off the Vice Chancellor from the meeting. The meeting was fixed at the office of HRD Minister. The venue was changed at last moment and the VC was ten minute late,” one of the faculty member of AMU Malappuram, who was at the meeting, said.
“The minister asked the VC “Why did you come here?” The VC replied that he was invited by the Kerala Chief Minister. The minister shouted at Zameeruddin Shah: “Who pays you, HRD Ministry or Kerala CM? Go back and sit in your room,” the source said.
According to the source, the delegation decided to blackout the issue for the sake of the development of the Malappuram centre.
The UPA Government’s plan was to develop the Centre to a full-fledged university by 2020 with 3000 students and 30 departments. Presently there are around 350 students studying in three departments.