After flutter, Javadekar says no intention to rename BHU, AMU
A SECTION OF THE AMU FRATERNITY DESCRIBED THE UGC PANEL’S SUGGESTION AS A POLITICAL MOVE.
VARANASI/ALIGARH: A University Grants Commission (UGC) audit committee’s suggestion to drop the words ‘Muslim’ from Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and ‘Hindu’ from Banaras Hindu University caused a flutter among those associated with the two universities on Monday.
The panel said the words should be dropped as they do not reflect the secular character of the universities.
Following the uproar, Union human resource development (HRD) minister Prakash Javadekar told reporters in Ahmedabad the government had no intention to change the names of AMU and BHU.
“The mandate of the (UGC) committee is to look into the administrative, academic and research audits of universities. We will not take cognisance of what they have recommended outside of this,” he said.
A section of the AMU fraternity described the UGC panel’s suggestion as a political move.
Prof Asim Siddiqui, AMU’S official spokesperson, said: “No letter from the UGC has been received by the University wherein any such recommendation has been made. As far as the name is concerned, it has been accorded by an Act of Parliament and only Parliament has the power to change the name.”
Siddiqui also said: “The AMU is a secular university. The first graduate of AMU was a nonmuslim, Ishwari Prasad.”
Mohd Shoeb, AMU student leader, said: “Removing the word ‘Muslim’ from the University’s name is the BJP’S hidden agenda. If the Centre takes any step to change the AMU’S name, we will approach the court.”
Students and professors of the BHU are also not in favour of the recommendation. They said the word ‘Hindu’ in the institution’s name has never caused any problem on the campus.
Ram Pravesh Pathak, who teaches political science at BHU, said, “The word Hindu is connected with the identity of the BHU. Students of all castes and creeds and also from foreign countries study together. Therefore, dropping the Hindu from BHU would not be pertinent.”