By Md. Ali, TwoCircles.net,
New Delhi: While the students of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) are continuing their agitation and hunger strike for the restoration of students union in the university, corruption and suppression of freedom of expression on the academic campus are being alleged by a section of students who were suspended by the university administration for airing their anti-establishment views.
Suppression of dissent
A case in point is 23 year old Md Adil Hossain. He was a Mass Communication student of AMU but few months back the university authorities rusticated him and imposed a lifelong campus ban on him for “expressing dissent against the draconian measures of the university administration.”
Suspended for using “internet”
Adil’s “crime” was that he used “RTI activism on campus in order to expose the corruption and malpractices of the current university dispensation and ways and means trough which it was crushing freedom of expression on the campus”.
Deteriorating condition of AMU students on hunger strike
For instance he put the RTI replies on the internet in order to “expose” the Local Intelligence Unit of Proctor Office which “spies on students and teachers at the taxpayer’s expense”.
He had also opposed the installation of the CCTV cameras in the campus and had gone public with his protest. At present this lone fighter hasn’t lost hope and has gone to court against his rustication.
AMU administration tried to do the same with Irfan Khan, a researcher in Mass Communication AMU who has been suspended thrice in a single academic carrier because of his protest against the dissolution of the AMUSU and against the draconian rules on the campus.
Talking to TwoCircles.net both Mr. Khan and Adil said that the basic reason why P.K.Abdul Aziz the vice chancellor of AMU is not restoring the AMUSU is because it will raise its voice against his “corrupt and autocratic” practices.
Presidential inquiry against AMU VC
It’s worth mentioning here that the President of India Pratibha Patil constituted an inquiry against the VC P. K. Abdul Azis and some senior officials of the university because of alleged financial irregularities at the University.
Adil also pointed towards reports of financial bungling and the latest reports that the Judges of that Commission of inquiry were being influenced with hefty perks and benefits at the cost of taxpayers’ money.
Irfan Khan who is also a filmmaker and a freelance journalist told TCN that at this moment “AMU students are sitting in front of the Vice-Chancellor’s lodge and one student Faheem is sitting on “hunger strike till death” whose health condition is only worsening every hour, with ketone bodies coming out of his urine.”
The demand is simple; restore the AMU Students Union immediately, Mr. Khan added.
Dissolution of student union illegal
Adil pointed out that AMU Constitution doesn’t empower the VC to suspend the Statute 34 of the AMU Act by not restoring the AMU Students Union.
By not restoring the AMUSU, the Vice-Chancellor is also disobeying the Statute 3(2) which asks him to observe the Statutes anyway, added Adil.
He emphasized that “it is clearly written in the AMU statues that ‘There shall be a Students Union’.
We want elections AMUSU
Interestingly when Adil Hossain filed an RTI in the university asking for the “facts and reasons for not holding elections of AMUSU” the final reply was “no facts/reasons are available on records of this office.”
Internet, a platform to mobilize support
In the meantime the agitating students have utilized the medium of internet and social networking sites to mobilize opinion and support for the AMUSU. From alumni of AMU, educated and net savvy class to Muslim leaders and journalists and the common public, every body have come out to support the struggle.
A profile named Amu StruggleCommittee has been created on Facebook which is updated every single day to inform the net savvy public about latest development in the movement for the students union.
VC notified election dates
On the other hand the Rahat Abrar PRO of AMU defended the VC’s decision saying that “of course the VC being the patron of the union has got emergency powers to take decisions for the larger betterment of the academic life of the university including withholding elections for some time”.
The PRO of AMU also pointed out that “P.K. Aziz, the VC has promised the agitating students that the election of AMUSU will be held in January and the registrar of AMU has also brought out notifications to this effect.”
Mr. Abrar out rightly rejected any allegation of suppression of freedom of expression or those of financial irregularity.
Agitation for AMUSU
But all the students sitting on Dharna outside the VC Lodge emphasized that they don’t trust the registrar’s notification because the VC had promised restoration of the AMUSU last year also but no thing happened.
Political support to the agitation
In the meantime the students’ agitation for the AMUSU has got a widespread support among the politicians across the political spectrum. Right from Amar Singh to Rahul Gandhi have gone public to support the demand for withholding elections for the students union in AMU.
The PM in waiting also met Kapil Sibal Union Minister for HRD and expressed the need for AMU to restore and include the student body in the democratic process of functioning of the university.