Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) is an Indian public central university. It was originally established by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan as Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College in 1875. Its Chief Engineer was Nawab Sarwar Jung. The Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College became Aligarh Muslim University in 1920. The main campus of AMU is located in the city of Aligarh which spread over about 468 hectares. AMU offers more than 300 courses in both traditional and modern branches of education. In addition to this it has its three off-campus Centers at Malappuram (Kerala), Murshidabad (West Bengal) and Kishanganj (Bihar). The university comprises all castes, creeds, religions and genders. The university’s formal head is the Chancellor, though this is a titular figure, not involved in routine affairs of the university. The Chancellor is elected by the members of University Court, a body with members drawn from all walks of life. The university’s Chief Executive is the Vice-Chancellor, appointed by the President of India on the recommendation of the Court. The Court is the supreme governing body of the University and exercises all the powers of the University, not otherwise provided for by the Aligarh Muslim University Act, the Statutes, the Ordinances and the Regulations of the University.
Like student bodies of other universities or education institutions, Aligarh Muslim University Students Union (AMUSU) is the university-wide representative body for students of AMU. It is primarily responsible for building and preserving a healthy political culture and an atmosphere of open debates on the campus. Students are kept informed about the public meetings, discussions and other issues through pamphlets and notices. Public Action, an objective forum, invited a variety of journalists, politicians, and academics, to debate and to discuss various topics. It is mentionable here that Mahatma Gandhi was the first life member of the union and was conferred upon him on 1920. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sarojini Naidu, C. V. Raman, E. M. Forster are also life members of the union. AMU, for decades, has seen a photograph of Pakistan founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah adorning one of its walls. However, a controversy has broken out over the demand for the removal of the photo. Jinnah was granted a lifetime membership of the Aligarh Muslim University Students Union (AMUSU) in 1938. As a customary practice, his portrait was hung in the office of AMUSU along with other honorary members. Jinnah having played a pivotal role in the India-Pakistan partition is not a popular figurine among Indian sentiments, therefore anything to do with Jinnah gets an auto-connect to Pakistan.
AMU, having historic significance in the struggle of Muslims of sub-continent for independence, has remained a thorn in the eyes of chauvinistic Hindus since ages. Since the Modi government, Muslim students as well as populace have been subjected to organized violence on different pretexts. In AMU fire broke out when VC turned down the plea of AMU “RSS activist” namely Amir Rasheed to organize a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh `shakha’ (Hindu Vedic/information promoting gathering) in the campus.In a reaction to the rejection, BJP Lok Sabha MP from Aligarh Satish Gautam, opened another Pandora box and through a letter to Vice Chancellor (VC) of AMU objected to Pakistan founder’s picture on the walls of the AMU student union office and enquired from the VC Tariq Mansoor why the portrait of the said gentleman was present in the college room? AMU spokesman Shafey Kidwai defended the portrait, apparently hanging there for decades, saying that Jinnah was a founder of the university and granted life membership of the student union. The local BJP leadership played the negative role and mobilized Hindu Yuva Vahini (RSS affiliated student wing) activists to target Muslim students of AMU and create unrest.
As a consequence, on2 May 2018, RSS affiliated activists / extremists disrupted an event at AMU Aligarh in which Muhammad Hamid Ansari (Indian Vice-President from 2007 to 2017) was invited. Around 30 activists of the Hindu Yuva Vahini accompanied by uniformed policemen had reached the main gate of AMU, where they shouted slogans like ‘We will not let such respect for Jinnah in India”, “If you want to remain in India, you must say Vande Mataram’, “Vande Mataram, Jai Shri Ram”. They resorted to violence and disrupted the gathering. Over two dozen students, including student’s union President Mashkoor Ahmad Usmani were injured. Students of AMU believe that the intruders were from the Hindu Yuva Vahini, a militia established in April 2002 by Adityanath (current CM of UP). Ironically, UP police remained spectator to the hooliganism of RSS student wing and even resorted to baton and tear gas charge against the peacefully protesting students of AMU who wanted to lodge FIR against Vahini activists.AMU students went on boycott of the academic activities and have started org protest demonstrations against extremist Hindu student wing elements. Moreover, Aligarh Muslim University Teachers’ Association said: “We strongly condemn the brutal action taken by police against AMU students. Instead of taking action against criminal aggressors, AMU students who were victims were re-victimized by baton-charge.” They also demanded arrest of the Vahini activists.As students continued to boycott academic activities at AMU and organized widely protest demonstration, President of Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union, Geeta Kumari while addressing the sit-in asked RSS and different saffron groups to “stop interfering in the internal affairs” of different educational institutions in the country. Addressing the protesting AMU students at their sit-in site, Geeta Kumari said, “She also asked the saffron groups to stop taunting Muslims and repeatedly asking them to “go to Pakistan”.
Reportedly, it has remained a recent pattern of extremists’ Hindu student wing to provoke the Muslim student on any pretexts to unleash violence at university campus. Former students’ union president, Faizul Hasan recalled that Hindutva groups constantly provoke them and through local media statements, all AMU students are labeled as Pakistan supporters or terrorism supporters. Another Hindutva group (Hindu Jagran Manch) demanded renaming of AMU as “Raja Mahendra Pratap Singh University (the person who had “donated land” for AMU). Addressing a press conference Ghanshyam Singh, state President of Hindu Jagran Manch (HJM) also alleged that Jawaharla Nehru University (JNU) in Delhi and Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) were “used” by anti-national forces. Adding fuel to the fire and wading into portrait controversy, Indian Union Minister VK Singh said that “If you are a Muslim and want Jinnah’s portrait on your walls, then this is a huge insult of your forefathers who had rejected his ideology. You are an Indian today because of them.”
The violence in AMU and other parts of the country against minorities especially Muslims depict that India is witnessing darkening episodes of rise of Hindutva or Bhagva. Religious minority groups in India are consistently subjected to inhuman and intolerant treatment at the hands of growing violent and extremist Hindu majority. Violence and denial of constitutional rights are the usual tools with which Indian minorities are preyed by extremist Hindu majority. With the growing influence of Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP), comfort and freedom of action for affiliated Hindu extremists groups like Rashtriya Sevak Sangh (RSS), Shiv Sena, Vishv Hindu Parishad (VHP) etc.have also increased. Sangh Parivar proclaims an ideology of “Hindutva,” with an agenda of subjugating or driving out Sikhs, Muslims, Christians and other communities. VHP International President Ashok Singhal had described the Gujarat carnage as a “successful experiment” and warned that it would be repeated all over India. In 2014, Dharm Jagran Smiti (DJS) leader Rajeshwar Singh had threatened to Hinuize India by 2021 by expelling or re-converting Muslims and Christians people.BJP, its functionary organizations, groups etc are carrying out the same threat methodically throughout the India. Since ascension of Modi in New Delhi, the threat has started its manifestation in many shapes. Schools and other educational institutions including Curriculum is being systematically Hinduized, followed by ban on “Beef”, despite being the biggest beef exporter country. The hate campaigns are becoming frequent and violent as evident from lynching of Muslims over Beef controversy, blackening the face of Muslim parliamentarians in IOK, desecration of Sikh religious books erupting into widespread unrest in Indian Punjab and violence against Christians and Dalits. Muslims face massacres, Christians are subjected to vandalism of Churches and rape of elderly Nuns, Sikh community is being suppressed in the name of Khalistanetc and denied separate socio-religious status, whereas, Scheduled castes and other communities face different intimidating tactics at the cruel and barbaric hands of upper class Hindus.
Organized violence at AMU is also continuation of the same tactic of unfolding Hindutva or Saffronized India. A Hindu extremist country in a progressing region will pose serious threat and challenge to the regional peace and security. International community should end its slumber and remain cautious for another kind of looming threat in the shape of Hindu fanaticism. It should be understood that any kind of support to India will be in adverdent support for Hindu extremism. International Players need to take cognizance of the situation and initiate measures to control “Hindu extremism” as a potent threat to the peace, stability and progress of the region. Otherwise, India is likely to emerge as unmatchable threat to the global security due to ever increasing power of fanatic Hindus.
