rediff.com Special: Allegations of anti-national activities cloud the Aligarh University

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The Rediff Special

Josy Joseph

The arrest... and after

A seat of higher learning. Or a terrorist den?
How true is the allegation that the Aligarh Muslim University, alma mater of scores of freedom fighters and social leaders, today breeds anti-national forces ready to execute Pakistan's diabolic agenda?
As envisaged by its founder Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, the students of this century-old minority institution "shall go forth through the length and breadth of the land to preach the gospel of free enquiry, of large-hearted toleration, and of pure morality".
Large-hearted toleration? Today that seems a joke. Especially in light of the current crisis there. Which is intimately connected with the ongoing national debate on the alleged victimisation of minority communities, whose patriotism is being questioned.
Academics have certainly taken a back seat. Classes are held, yes -- when circumstances permit. Read that as, when the dust kicked off by each controversy dies down for brief moments.
The latest trouble threatens to destroy AMU's academic sanctity. The local police, certain politicians and a section of the media allege that the university has become a den of anti-nationals, a hideout and training camp for terrorists funded by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence.
Expectedly, the students are hurt.
IT started on September 3, a Sunday.
A group of men in civvies whisked away Dr Abdul Mobin, a former student and an intern at the Ajmal Khan Tibbiya College within the university, from outside his hostel that afternoon.
The initial conclusion was that he was kidnapped. In Aligarh and surrounding areas, kidnapping is almost a routine.
"I was getting ready for dinner," recollects Vice-Chancellor Mohammad Hamid Ansari. "Someone called me up to inform that two boys have been kidnapped. We rushed people to the local police."
The authorities contacted the police in the neighbouring districts too. But there was no information about Dr Mobin.
Soon students began to gather outside the proctor's office. They blocked the vice-chancellor on the road and reportedly damaged his car.
As the situation worsened, Ansari, a former Indian Foreign Service officer, rang up Home Minister L K Advani, requesting more police force. Soon, the Rapid Action Force was deployed in the campus.
Ansari, who was India's permanent representative at the United Nations, put his diplomatic skills to good use and managed to keep the situation under control. Meanwhile, the crowd continued its night vigil in the university's central courtyard.
The next morning, at 0930 hours IST, the Aligarh district police chief Ramji Lal informed the VC that Mobin was in the custody of the Agra police. It appeared that he was arrested in connection with the series of bomb blasts from August 15 to 18 across Uttar Pradesh, including the one in the Sabarmati Express in which nine people were killed.
The media reported that Mobin was a member of Hizbul Mujahideen, the terrorist group that recently declared cease-fire in Kashmir.
The police claimed that he was a member of the Students Islamic Movement of India, in which anti-nationals are said to be active.
The students, for their part, said that Dr Mobin was no more part of the SIMI, that he had been expelled from it for ideological differences.
The police initially claimed that they arrested him with half a kilo of RDX. Later, they said that they recovered the RDX from a place he identified.
"We are protesting against the way in which Mobin was arrested. Does the police have the right to pick up any student from within the university campus without informing the authorities?" the students ask, adding:
"If Mobin is involved in anti-national or criminal activities, he should be punished."
"The police have the right to arrest anyone from anywhere. Only, they should produce him before a magistrate within 24 hours," argues Ramji Lal, the Aligarh police chief.
After a circular was sent out informing the students about Dr Mobin's whereabouts, the situation became manageable by Monday morning. But an attempted investigation by an Intelligence Bureau inspector Tuesday morning returned the campus to chaos.
Inspector Rajen Sharma reached Habib Hall to inquire about Dr Mobin and another student, Gulzar. He was carrying a camera. Worse, he revealed his identity to the agitated students.
The students manhandled him. They claim that they "thought that he was a thief."
That, nobody buys.
"It was a very stupid thing to have happened," admits the vice-chancellor. "He did a thoughtless thing. He went in there knowing that it was where it all happened. It was like pouring oil on fire."
The students forced Sharma to write a statement that Dr Mobin was not involved in any blasts. The VC intervened. But the students demanded the presence of journalists before they released Sharma.
That was how it finally ended -- with Sharma stating before the local scribes that Dr Mobin is innocent.
"We managed to resolve it finally. It was not painless, but it could have been more painful," comments the vice-chancellor.
POLICE chief Ramji Lal says the Sharma incident was the culmination of a series of attacks. The VC's car was damaged and the proctor's office ransacked before the students manhandled the IB sleuth.
"He was badly thrashed up with belts, cycle-chains etc," Lal says.
The police on September 11 issued notices under sections 82 and 83 of the Criminal Procedure Code to attach the properties of 10 students. A first information report has been lodged against some 612 students. Twelve of them have been named.
The students have formed the Students Struggle Committee. They have several demands, including action against the media and police for trying to defame the university.
The university authorities are striving to resolve the crisis, but the police aren't ready to back off. They say they won't let anyone go scot-free after "bashing up Sharma and carrying out anti-national activities".
Local scribes, for their part, fed for years on official statements, continue with unverified reports, mostly alleging anti-national activities in the university.
The allegations throw up a couple of questions. Is the historic institution really a den of anti-nationalists?
Or is it just a victim of changing political alignments?
CONTINUED:
'If one out of 28,000 students is a criminal, can our university
be called criminal?'

RELATED REPORT
AMU students' involvement with extremists confirmed,
says UP official

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	The Rediff Special *Josy Joseph* The arrest... and after A seat of higher learning. Or a terrorist den? How true is the allegation that the Aligarh Muslim University, alma mater of scores of freedom fighters and social leaders, today breeds anti-national forces ready to execute Pakistan's diabolic agenda? As envisaged by its founder Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, the students of this century-old minority institution "shall go forth through the length and breadth of the land to preach the gospel of free enquiry, of large-hearted toleration, and of pure morality". Large-hearted toleration? Today that seems a joke. Especially in light of the current crisis there. Which is intimately connected with the ongoing national debate on the alleged victimisation of minority communities, whose patriotism is being questioned. Academics have certainly taken a back seat. Classes are held, yes -- when circumstances permit. Read that as, when the dust kicked off by each controversy dies down for brief moments. The latest trouble threatens to destroy AMU's academic sanctity. The local police, certain politicians and a section of the media allege that the university has become a den of anti-nationals, a hideout and training camp for terrorists funded by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence. Expectedly, the students are hurt. IT started on September 3, a Sunday. A group of men in civvies whisked away Dr Abdul Mobin, a former student and an intern at the Ajmal Khan Tibbiya College within the university, from outside his hostel that afternoon. The initial conclusion was that he was kidnapped. In Aligarh and surrounding areas, kidnapping is almost a routine. "I was getting ready for dinner," recollects Vice-Chancellor Mohammad Hamid Ansari. "Someone called me up to inform that two boys have been kidnapped. We rushed people to the local police." The authorities contacted the police in the neighbouring districts too. But there was no information about Dr Mobin. Soon students began to gather outside the proctor's office. They blocked the vice-chancellor on the road and reportedly damaged his car. As the situation worsened, Ansari, a former Indian Foreign Service officer, rang up Home Minister L K Advani, requesting more police force. Soon, the Rapid Action Force was deployed in the campus. Ansari, who was India's permanent representative at the United Nations, put his diplomatic skills to good use and managed to keep the situation under control. Meanwhile, the crowd continued its night vigil in the university's central courtyard. The next morning, at 0930 hours IST, the Aligarh district police chief Ramji Lal informed the VC that Mobin was in the custody of the Agra police. It appeared that he was arrested in connection with the series of bomb blasts from August 15 to 18 across Uttar Pradesh, including the one in the Sabarmati Express in which nine people were killed. The media reported that Mobin was a member of Hizbul Mujahideen, the terrorist group that recently declared cease-fire in Kashmir. The police claimed that he was a member of the Students Islamic Movement of India, in which anti-nationals are said to be active. The students, for their part, said that Dr Mobin was no more part of the SIMI, that he had been expelled from it for ideological differences. The police initially claimed that they arrested him with half a kilo of RDX. Later, they said that they recovered the RDX from a place he identified. "We are protesting against the way in which Mobin was arrested. Does the police have the right to pick up any student from within the university campus without informing the authorities?" the students ask, adding: "If Mobin is involved in anti-national or criminal activities, he should be punished." "The police have the right to arrest anyone from anywhere. Only, they should produce him before a magistrate within 24 hours," argues Ramji Lal, the Aligarh police chief. After a circular was sent out informing the students about Dr Mobin's whereabouts, the situation became manageable by Monday morning. But an attempted investigation by an Intelligence Bureau inspector Tuesday morning returned the campus to chaos. Inspector Rajen Sharma reached Habib Hall to inquire about Dr Mobin and another student, Gulzar. He was carrying a camera. Worse, he revealed his identity to the agitated students. The students manhandled him. They claim that they "thought that he was a thief." That, nobody buys. "It was a very stupid thing to have happened," admits the vice-chancellor. "He did a thoughtless thing. He went in there knowing that it was where it all happened. It was like pouring oil on fire." The students forced Sharma to write a statement that Dr Mobin was not involved in any blasts. The VC intervened. But the students demanded the presence of journalists before they released Sharma. That was how it finally ended -- with Sharma stating before the local scribes that Dr Mobin is innocent. "We managed to resolve it finally. It was not painless, but it could have been more painful," comments the vice-chancellor. POLICE chief Ramji Lal says the Sharma incident was the culmination of a series of attacks. The VC's car was damaged and the proctor's office ransacked before the students manhandled the IB sleuth. "He was badly thrashed up with belts, cycle-chains etc," Lal says. The police on September 11 issued notices under sections 82 and 83 of the Criminal Procedure Code to attach the properties of 10 students. A first information report has been lodged against some 612 students. Twelve of them have been named. The students have formed the Students Struggle Committee. They have several demands, including action against the media and police for trying to defame the university. The university authorities are striving to resolve the crisis, but the police aren't ready to back off. They say they won't let anyone go scot-free after "bashing up Sharma and carrying out anti-national activities". Local scribes, for their part, fed for years on official statements, continue with unverified reports, mostly alleging anti-national activities in the university. The allegations throw up a couple of questions. Is the historic institution really a den of anti-nationalists? Or is it just a victim of changing political alignments? CONTINUED: 'If one out of 28,000 students is a criminal, can our university be called criminal?' RELATED REPORT AMU students' involvement with extremists confirmed, says UP official
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