Katheria to write UGC asking how an institution violating constitutional norms gets govt funding

New Delhi, Aug 9: Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Commission plans to go to Supreme Court after looking into every document provided by Aligarh Muslim University that it had asked for in support of the minority status of AMU. The concern of the commission has been that AMU is not providing reservation to SCs, STs and OBCs just for self-proclaimed minority status. The commission also plans to write to University Grant Commission about Rs 1,000 crore fund that it gets per annam despite not following the constitutional provisions.

Chairman of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Commission Ram Shamkar Katheria told One India that the university officials were not able to give any answer to the commission on why they are not providing reservation to Scs/STs despite getting funds from the government. They just repeated that the matter is in the Supreme Court.

The Commission on Thursday summoned not only officials of the AMU but also HRD secretary, minority secretary, social justice secretary and UGC officials. Katheria said that the HRD ministry clearly said that it has furnished the document to the court that AMU is not a minority institution. This was ruled by the court first in 1968, 2005 and 2006. The HRD ministry has given an affidavit that AMU is not a minority university. The Commission will writ to the UGC that how can such an institution be given central funding that violates constitutional provisions?

Interestingly Union HRD ministry clearly said that it had furnished an affidavit to the Supreme Court while Union minority ministry official said that the AMU did not ask for minority status for it. On the other hand secretary to the Aligarh Muslim University Old Boys Association Mudassir Hayat told One India that AMU was very much a minority institution and for that Rs 36 lakh was paid in 1905 and all these things are documented. He further said that if these institutions will not be spared, where will 20 crore Muslims of the country go who are already educationally backward.

Katheria said that AMU was given 30 days time to come with documents supporting minority status but it failed to come up with any document and was rather repeating that the matter is in court. They further said that one amendment was made in 1981 giving minority status but that too was struck down in 2005 by the court.

The SC/ST chairman said that Jamia Milia Islamia has also been asked to respond on the same subject of not providing reservation to Muslims. On being asked, vice chancellor of AMU refused to say anything and was just parroting that the matter is in the court and he asked media person to speak to SC/ST commission's chair on the issue.