Jamia Millia Islamia university V-C in a spot over admission of 17 students

An RTI query has revealed that Jamia Millia Islamia university vice-chancellor Talat Ahmad nominated 17 students for admission to Jamia schools during the current academic session in violation of the university statutes. The university has admitted there is no resolution or circular empowering the vice-chancellor to nominate candidates to the Jamia schools. In response to an RTI query filed by Sukhdev Jain, the university said, “For the academic session 2015-16, total number of 980 candidates were admitted in Jamia schools of whom 17 were granted admission on recommendation of the vice-chancellor.” In the same response, the university also admitted that there is no circular/order/memo/notice or resolution explicitly empowering the vice-chancellor, who is the principal executive and academic officer of the university, to nominate candidates for admission.

There are five schools run by the Jamia administration — Jamia Senior Secondary School, Syed Abid Hussain Senior Secondary School (self-finance), Jamia Girls Senior Secondary School, Jamia Middle School and Mushir Fatma Nursery School. Admissions to these schools are made on the basis of performance in a written test and an interview.

The RTI response maintained that the recommendations are marginal and have had no impact on the sanctioned strength. “Admissions for sanctioned strength of seats in the Jamia schools are not disturbed by any marginal recommendations by the vice-chancellor for admission over and above the sanctioned intake in any special exceptional cases,” it added.

The university authorities, however, maintained that though there is no official rule, the vice-chancellor has an implied discretion to do so. “There is an implied discretion that the vice-chancellor can recommend admissions in exceptional cases vis-à-vis students coming from exceptionally weaker sections of society or first generation learners in pursuit of community development,” said Jamia spokesperson Mukesh Ranjan.

The issue of backdoor entries to Jamia schools also figures in the allegations raised by Prof. Obaid Siddiqui, a mass communications professor, in his petition to President Pranab Mukherjee, who is Visitor to the university.

Prof. Siddiqui, was suspended last week by the university for the misconduct of approaching the President without having articulated his concerns before the varsity administration.