Edu-leaders

Jamia Millia Islamia said that it will study the judgment by the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions (NCMEI) granting it "minority institution" status and work out the modalities of its implementation.

The NCMEI granted "minority institution" status to Jamia Millia Islamia on Tuesday, giving it the right to reserve up to 50 percent of seats for Muslims, annulling all the other reservations.

The order could change the secular character of the central university as it will not have to provide a quota for OBCs and Dalits. Jamia currently has 22.5 reservations for SCs/STs, 25 percent for students from the Jamia school and three percent for the physically handicapped.

But, Najeeb Jung, Vice Chancellor of the university, said, "The judgment does not change the essential character of Jamia. The university has always had a commitment to national goals of social justice and secular ideals. It will continue to uphold these in the future too.”

The NCMEI judgement put to end the five-year-long case on a petition filed by the Jamia Students’ Union, the Jamia Old Boys’ Association and the Jamia Teachers’ Association in 2006, contending the university was a minority institution and not obliged to implement any other quota following the government’s decision to implement 27 percent reservation for other backward classes (OBSs) in the university.

The Confederation of Muslim Education Institutions of India was an intervening party, while the Vice Chancellor of the university, the Human Resource Development Ministry and Minority Affairs Ministry were the respondents.

Source: igovernment