Amid the controversy over the arrest of its doctor on allegations of religious conversion and claims that a “love jihad” network is running from its campus, the King George’s Medical University administration has directed the removal of five mazars (shrines) on its campus.
Issuing notices to the management of the mazars on Friday, the university directed that the “encroachments” be removed within 15 days from the date of receipt of the notice, failing which further legal and administrative action would be initiated including “forcible removal”.
The shrine management committees and religious leaders associated with them have protested the move and demanded that the notices be withdrawn.
According to the university administration, the shrines were allegedly constructed without valid permission or official approval on illegally encroached public land, making their existence unlawful.
It claimed that the presence of these shrines has led to frequent and unnecessary gatherings within the university premises, causing obstruction to free movement and disturbing the peaceful academic and medical environment of the campus.
Officials further claimed that such gatherings have adversely affected sanitation and security arrangements, creating serious safety concerns for patients, women employees, resident doctors, and students.
The administration maintained that any religious, commercial, or unauthorised construction inside the university campus amounts to illegal encroachment on public property.
When contacted, KGMU spokesperson Professor K K Singh said, “We are not aware of the management or custodians of these mazars. Therefore, we pasted detailed notices on the walls of the shrines.”
“If the directions mentioned in the notice are not complied with within the stipulated 15-day period, the university will decide on the next course of action,” said Singh, who is also the nodal officer (land acquisition) at KGMU.
He said eight mazars were located within the university campus, out of which three were removed over the past one-and-a-half years. The mazars issued notices are on the land behind Building No. 2 of the Department of Microbiology, near the Trauma Centre, the new orthopaedic building and the Respiratory department, he added.
The university administration maintained that all such actions are being carried out strictly in accordance with guidelines and directions issued by the Supreme Court.
Reacting strongly to the notices, General Secretary of the All India Shia Personal Law Board Maulana Yasoob Abbas rejected the allegation that the presence of the mazars disrupts arrangements or blocks ambulance routes. “The whole district remains jammed due to poor traffic management. Blaming mazars for this is merely an excuse to target them,” he said.
Terming the notices as unjustified, he said they were wrongly issued and added that he would request the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and the state government to intervene and direct the authorities to withdraw the notices.
Mohammad Shakeel, who claims to be managing one of the mazars that has issued a notice, said the shrine existed much before KGMU came into existence. He alleged that the university administration was raising unnecessary issues.
“They should first remove the small shops operating illegally inside and outside the KGMU campus. Instead, the university is targeting mazars, where people come only to offer prayers and seek peace,” Shakeel said.
Prominent Sunni cleric and member of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, Maulana Khalid Rasheed Firangi Mahali, said the mazars have been in existence since before Independence and that the notices issued by KGMU are unjustified.
He said that if the KGMU administration has any concerns, it should hold discussions with those concerned to resolve the issue amicably. He added that people from all communities visit the mazars and demanded that the notices be withdrawn.
A former KGMU professor, who earned his medical degree from the institution and has had a long association with it, said the mazars existed long before the university buildings came up and that there had been little sustained effort in the past to relocate them. A Lucknow-based historian, meanwhile, said he had not come across historical records or documented references with regard to the mazars.
King George’s Medical University administration has directed the removal of five mazars (shrines) on its campus as part of a drive to clear “unauthorised construction”. (File Photo) 
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