NEW DELHI: Rector of Darul-Uloom Deoband Maulana Ghulam Mohammad Vastanvi was on Sunday removed from the post by a three-member committee.
Students and teachers were divided over the fate of Vastanvi after he refused to yield to demands for his exit and the three-member committee was constituted to probe the allegations against him. The committee submitted its report on Sunday at the general body meeting.
Though the committee did not blame Vastanvi for the controversy, he was apparently sacked on the premise that he did not stick to his earlier promise of resignation.
Vastanvi’s supporters claimed that the report was incomplete and he has been removed from the post due to conspiracy by a section of people at the seminary.
“Vastanvi’s ouster is bad news for this institution which has a glorious history. He wanted the Muslim youth to be progressive and forward looking. He wanted them to be part of mainstream India rather than harping on ghettoisation and backwardness and he was quite forthright about his views. This was something the conservatives could not stand. They all teamed up against him,’’ a unnamed teacher within the Deoband told Express.
He feared that the Deoband will go back to its conservative outlook after Vastanvi.
The government, however, refused to take sides, saying it is an “internal matter.’’ “There is no need for the government to intervene in the matter as it is an internal issue of the Deoband. But we hope the issue will be settled amicably,’’ said Minority affairs Minister Salman Khurshid. The BJP, however, said Vastanvi was removed for “speaking the truth.’’