As a seven-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court on Tuesday began hearing petitions on the question of the minority status of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), the BJP-led government at the Centre told the apex court that its decision to withdraw the challenge to the judgment of the Allahabad High Court in 2016 was “based upon Constitutional considerations alone” and the change of governments was “inconsequential”. In January 2006, the Allahabad High Court had struck down amendments made to the AMU Act by which the university was accorded the minority status. The Congress-led UPA government at the Centre, as well as the AMU, moved an appeal in the top court against the Allahabad High Court order. After the BJP came to power in the Centre, the government told the Supreme Court in 2016 that it was withdrawing the appeal filed by the previous government. In written submissions before the Constitution Bench, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said, “The stand taken earlier by the government to file SLP challenging the judgment of the High Court was contrary to the original stand of the Centre taken in Azeez Basha case. The stand taken to file SLP was also against the public policy of reservation for SCs/STs/OBCs/EWSs as applicable to central universities, therefore, against public interest. It is, therefore, submitted that the prayer for withdrawal of appeal has been made after due consideration of the legal position”. In S Azeez Basha vs Union of India case of 1967, a five-judge Constitution bench of the apex court held that AMU was not entitled to minority education status as it “was neither established nor administered by the Muslim minority”. The apex court held that the university was brought into existence by the Central legislature and “not by the Muslim minority”. The minority status was restored by an amendment to the AMU Act in 1981, but this was challenged before the Allahabad High Court, which struck down the changes in January 2006. On the change of stand, the Centre submitted that “the request for withdrawal is based on the original stand taken by the Union of India” and alleged that AMU was trying to give it a political colour. “The respondent (AMU), unfortunately, has made an attempt to give a political hue to the matter by stating under para 14 of their affidavit that the decision taken after the change of the government at the Centre is based on political consideration. It is unfortunate that a factual issue which has already been authoritatively decided by a Constitution Bench of this Hon’ble Court is being politicised and controverted on misconceived grounds,” said the SG. The bench presided by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud and comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna, Surya Kant, JB Pardiwala, Dipankar Datta, Manoj Misra and Satish Chandra Sharma is hearing a reference made to it by a three-judge bench in February 2019. The government strongly opposed AMU’s prayer that the judgment in the Azeez Pasha case needs to be reconsidered, saying it is settled law. It pointed out that AMU “has so far not challenged any of the amendments, namely the first amendment in 1951, the second amendment in 1965, the third amendment in 1972, and the fourth amendment in 1981, in the Aligarh Muslim University Act, 1920. “The university can thus not re-agitate the factual and facts based legal controversies already decided by a five-Judge bench which is clear from the present reference..” the Centre said. The Centre said the founding fathers made the non-minority character of “AMU and BHU crystal clear”. “It is clear that a university that was and is clearly an institution of national importance, has to be a non-minority university. The resultant effect of the said exemption would be drastic as AMU is. a large institute. and an enormous amount of students studying in various courses. It is submitted that a large national institute like Aligarh Muslim University ought to maintain its secular origins and serve the larger interest of the nation first,” it said.
