Supreme Court’s decision on the issue of minority status of Aligarh Muslim University will come tomorrow. In its decision given in 2005, Allahabad High Court had refused to consider AMU as a minority institution. A Constitution bench of 7 judges headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud heard AMU’s appeal against this. After 8 days of hearing, the bench had reserved the decision on February 1.
In 2006, the then UPA government at the Center had filed a petition in the Supreme Court against the decision of the High Court. However, in 2016, the NDA government told the Supreme Court that the central government would withdraw its 10-year-old appeal in this regard. Despite the government withdrawing the appeal, the petition of the university and AMU Old Boys Association remained pending. The Supreme Court heard the appeal of these two.
At present an annual grant of Rs 1500 crore is being received
The Central Government told the Supreme Court that it wants to follow the decision of the Supreme Court in the Aziz Basha case of 1968. In this decision, the Supreme Court had said that a central university established through an Act of Parliament cannot be given the status of a minority institution. The Center told the court that at the time of the establishment of AMU in 1920, it had itself accepted not to become a minority institution. During the British era, the government used to give grants to run AMU. This continued even after independence. Today this grant is Rs 1500 crore annually.
Since 2006, the Supreme Court had imposed a stay on recognizing it as a minority institution
On the basis of this old decision of the Supreme Court, Allahabad High Court had refused to consider AMU as a minority institution in 2006. Then the High Court had also declared it wrong to keep a separate quota for minorities in any course. The High Court had said that AMU is not a minority institution. Therefore, it has no right to implement reservation for minorities in its own country. AMU will have to implement SC/ST reservation like other universities. Immediately after the High Court’s decision in 2006, the Supreme Court had stayed the implementation of the High Court’s decision. Currently this ban continues.
Is Aligarh Muslim University the university of Muslims?
AMU argued during the hearing that after the 1967 decision, Parliament made changes in the AMU Act in 1981. In this change the university was written as ‘established by Muslims’. By changing Section 5 of the Act, it was written that this university works for the educational and cultural progress of the Muslims of India.
During the hearing, the Supreme Court asked the Central Government why it was citing the 1967 decision even after the Parliament changed the AMU Act in 1981. However, the court also said that the 1981 changes appear to have been made half-heartedly. This change fell short of granting the university the status of a minority institution. After the country became independent, there were changes in the Act in 1951 also. Under him the role of Muslims in the administration of the university was limited. The amendment made in 1981 does not change that situation.
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