Jamia, AMU are not terror hubs: J&K students' body seeks UP minister's sacking

Detailed summary

JKSA condemned Uttar Pradesh minister Thakur Raghuraj Singh's remarks targeting AMU and Jamia. The association said the comments stigmatised students and demanded accountability.

The Jammu and Kashmir Students Association (JKSA) on Wednesday condemned Uttar Pradesh Minister Thakur Raghuraj Singh over his remarks describing Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) as "hubs of terrorists" and threatening to shut down the two institutions.

The association demanded Singh's immediate removal from the Uttar Pradesh Council of Ministers and the registration of an FIR against him under appropriate legal provisions. It also urged the BJP's national leadership and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister to publicly condemn the minister's statements and take action against him.

JKSA National Convenor Nasir Khuehami said the remarks were communal and inflammatory, and accused the minister of attempting to stigmatise students and undermine institutions with significant contributions to India's education system and nation-building.

In a statement, Khuehami said elected representatives holding constitutional office should not use their positions to spread communal hatred, malign educational institutions or create an atmosphere of fear and hostility among students.

"It is disturbing that instead of addressing the pressing challenges confronting India's education sector, an elected representative is busy demonising universities, branding their students as potential terrorists and threatening to shut down institutions because of their names and identities," he said.

The association said AMU and Jamia were among India's historically significant educational institutions, with contributions to the country's freedom struggle, intellectual development and nation-building.

It said the universities had produced generations of distinguished personalities who had contributed to India's political, administrative, sporting, cultural and intellectual life.

Khuehami said reducing the legacy of the institutions to their religious identities or describing them as centres of terrorism was an insult to their students, teachers and scholars.

"Jamia and AMU are integral to…

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