Owaisi hails Supreme Court ruling on AMU’s minority status

Hyderabad parliamentarian Asaduddin Owaisi. File
| Photo Credit: ANI

Hyderabad parliamentarian Asaduddin Owaisi on Friday (November 8, 2024) welcomed the seven-member Supreme Court’s Constitutional Bench ruling on the minority status of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), describing it it as a significant day for the Muslim community in India.

In a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), Mr. Owaisi stated that the decision rectifies the 1967 judgment, which had rejected AMU’s minority status. He underscored that Article 30 of the Constitution of India grants minorities the right to set up and run their educational institutions. This right was now reaffirmed by the court.

“This is an important day for Muslims of India,” Mr. Owaisi posted, adding that the court has upheld the right of minorities to educate themselves. He congratulated AMU’s students and faculty, stressing that it does not matter whether the university was established before the Constitution or by a law of the government. That it was founded by minorities qualifies it as a minority institution.

Owaisi also criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for its persistent opposition to AMU’s minority status. “The BJP has opposed minority status for AMU for all these years. What is it going to do now?” he questioned, urging the party to introspect and reconsider its stance on minority institutions like AMU and Jamia Millia Islamia. “It has made every effort to attack AMU and Jamia, and our right to even run madrasas. BJP must introspect and go for a course correction.”

Funding to AMU

Addressing the Modi government, Mr. Owaisi called for equal support for AMU as a central university and alleged that there were disparities in funding as compared to other institutions. He stated that while AMU receives ₹3.9 lakh per student, Banaras Hindu University (BHU) gets ₹6.15 lakh. “With the right support, these universities could be globally renowned. But for that, Modi must stop discriminating against them ,” he said, urging the government to stop discriminating against them.