NEW DELHI: Aligarh Muslim University is likely to lose its minority institution status as the Centre has withdrawn its appeal from the Supreme Court that challenged the Allahabad High Court ruling that it was not a minority institution.
The move comes few months before the state goes to the polls. The affidavit filed by the government stated, “This letter along with any other letter issued from the Ministry of Human Resource Development supporting the minority status of the AMU may be treated as withdrawn.”
Besides the Centre, the AMU administration had also filed a separate plea against the High Court verdict on the issue.
On April 4, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi made it clear before the apex court that they were going to withdraw the appeal stating the court ruling of 1967 saying that it was not a minority institution as it was set up by the government and not Muslims. The AG had told the apex court that AMU was set up by a Central act and moreover, a five-judge Constitution Bench in 1967 in the Aziz Basha case had held that it was a “Central University” and not a minority institution.
“You cannot override the Aziz Basha judgment. Union of India’s stand is that according minority status to AMU would be contrary to the Aziz Basha judgment and it still holds good,” the AG had then told the apex court which permitted the Centre to file an application and an affidavit within eight weeks to withdraw the appeal filed by it. The Allahabad High Court had in January 2006 struck down the provision of the AMU (Amendment) Act, 1981 by which the University was accorded minority status.
The university currently has 50 per cent reservation for internal students, irrespective of their religion.
The case will again come up before a Bench headed by Chief Justice T S Thakur later this month, who is likely to refer it to a Constitution Bench.
The AMU Act was enacted in 1920 dissolving and incorporating Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental (MAO) College. The AMU (Amendment) Act in 1951 was passed by Parliament to do away with compulsory instruction in Muslim theology.
Changes were introduced by the 1966 amendment to the AMU Act, which was challenged before the Supreme Court by S Azeez Basha. The SC dismissed the petition in 1967 holding that the AMU was not a minority institution because it had been established by an Act of Parliament and had not been set up by Muslims.
Another amendment to the AMU Act in 1972 made the academic and executive councils more democratic and drastically reduced the nominees of the Visitor.