The teachers and students of the Maulana Azad National Urdu University(MANUU),Hyderabad have expressed their anger over the pro CAA statement given by the university vice-chancellor Firoz Bakht Ahmad.
When Ahmad was asked whether he issued the statement in a personal or an official capacity . He is reported to have said, “ How does that even matter? You can understand it as persona; as well as from the chancellor. I am the chancellor f the university and do whatever I understand is right.”
While making the above statement, he also maintained that he had not consult anyone in his university before making the statement. He also said that he did not see any signficance in the fact that students throughout the country have been protesting against the NRC and the CAA.
He also issued an appeal to Muslims using the university letterhead, saying, “ The CAA and the NRC aren’t against Muslims.”
He also said that some people with vested interests were trying to vitiate the peaceful and harmonious fabric of India by scaring the Muslim community of the country. He also accused the protestors of creating a civil-war like situation and said, “ I appeal to you all not to get into the clutches of these politicians who want to break India. Kindly avoud coming on to the roads and strengthen the hands of Prime Minister Modi who I vouch is your well-wisher as his slogan for the Muslims has been, Ek hath mean Quran, ek hath mean computer.”
His stand on the CAA and the NRC have not gone down too well with the students and teachers comprising the community at the university. The students union at the university has been part of the anti-CAA protests since a very long time and are vehemently opposing the VC’s statement in support of the contentious NRC and CAA. They see the VC’s statement as an attempt to prioritise personal vested interests above the interests of the university community and stand to oppose it tooth and nail.
Students have also been engaged in burins the effigies of the VC during a protest to condemn his statement.
