By IANS,
New Delhi : Jamia Millia Islamia Vice Chancellor Najeeb Jung Friday felicitated 15 girl students, the first batch of girls who have recently been admitted to the 300-year-old Anglo Arabic School in the capital.
The Anglo Arabic School has made history by admitting girls for the first time in its over 300 year existence. Having started off as Madrasa Ghaziuddin around 1692, the school had remained an all-boys school thus far.
“This is the girls’ first step towards better schooling. The change will come gradually,” said Jung.
“Modern education has started arriving for girls from the community,” added Jung, who is also chairman of the school and president of the Delhi Education Society.
The school in the capital’s Ajmeri Gate area has produced the likes of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, founder of Aligarh Muslim University, Liaqat Ali Khan, the first prime minister of Pakistan, J.N. Dixit, former national security advisor and foreign secretary, among many other luminaries.
In a significant move, the managing committee of the school, in a meeting held March 26, decided to open its doors to girls. However, this decision was not considered favourably by the staff of the school, which is predominantly male, and it seemed at the time that this decision would not be implemented.
After a PIL filed by an M.Phil. student of JNU, Fatima Alvi, the Delhi High court and police were directed to ensure that the school’s managing committee’s decision is implemented.
Following the high court order, the school management swung into action and has so far admitted over 15 girls in Classes 6 to 11. The number is expected to increase in the comings days. Mehvish Rehmani, Darakshan Fatima and Gulafshan Fatima were the first applicants to secure admissions in the institution in Classes 11 (Commerce with Maths) and Class 7 respectively.