NEW DELHI: A recent appointment in the Arabic department ofJamia Millia Islamia has raised questions. According to sources familiar with the matter, Dr Masud Alam, who was appointed as an assistant professor on August 10, is alleged to have personal links with the university vice chancellor. Sources claim that the two are believed to be from the same village, though this could not be verified independently.
The appointment has drawn scrutiny due to allegations regarding Alam’s past, including claims that he has spent time in the Tihar Jail in connection with a case involving serious criminal charges. The current status and outcome of the case could not be immediately confirmed.
This comes a week after a complaint was reportedly filed with the Education Ministry, University Grants Commission and Delhi Police, seeking registration of an FIR against university registrar Mahtab Rizvi. The complaint allegedly raised similar concerns, claiming that Rizvi’s appointment too was made in violation of university regulations.
Adding another dimension to the controversy, sources pointed out that Alam is a co-translator of the Urdu edition of “Veer Savarkar: The Man Who Could Have Prevented Partition”, authored by Uday Mahurkar and Chirayu Pandit. The translation was published by the National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language under the Ministry of Education. Sources have questioned whether this academic association may have had any bearing on his selection. Repeated attempts to seek a response from the university’s spokesperson did not elicit any reply till the time of publication.