Two Muslim leaders of Uttar Pradesh established two universities but both got tainted even before they could earn fame. Former minister and SP leader Azam Khan constructed Mohammad Ali Johar University in Rampur. As soon as SP was out of power in 2017, bad days started for Azam Khan as well as this university. Today the situation has reached such a stage that the Rampur Development Authority has issued an order to demolish 38 out of 40 buildings of the university. The reason given is that these buildings were built without passing the map. One such luxurious university was built by former BSP MLC Haji Iqbal in Saharanpur, 300 km from Rampur. This university had not even fully come into existence when it came under the scanner of Police and ED and started dying. Although both these universities are functional, the grip of the law has tightened so much that their future is completely in the dark.
When was Azam Khan’s Johar University built?
Mohammad Ali Jauhar University was established in the year 2006 under an Act of the Uttar Pradesh State Legislature. According to the information given on the university’s site, its campus is spread over an area of more than 250 acres. There are grounds equipped with facilities for indoor games like badminton, chess, carrom, table tennis and outdoor games like football, hockey, cricket, lawn tennis, volleyball, horse riding, tug of war, pole vault. In the year 2012, the then Governor Aziz Qureshi gave minority status to the university. The bill related to this remained pending for almost 5 years during Mayawati’s rule. Although Aziz Qureshi was the Governor of Uttarakhand, he got the additional charge of the Governor of UP for just 2 months and during that time he passed this bill. Later he became the Governor of Mizoram. The academic session of the university started from 30 July 2012. Akhilesh Yadav inaugurated the university on 18 September 2012, just a few months after becoming the Chief Minister. Azam Khan was speaking in SP government. At the same time, the university and its surrounding area also continued to flourish.
Bad days after Yogi government came
Actually, Azam Khan was the target of BJP leaders in every election. But when BJP returned to Uttar Pradesh after a long time and Yogi Adityanath got the post of CM, it seemed as if the bad days of Azam Khan had started. In Rampur, such officers started getting charge who directly challenged Azam Khan. People of the area started filing cases to grab land for the university. FIRs kept being filed, Azam Khan and his family reached the floor. The whole family went to jail. In one case, the son’s legislature was lost, the wife had to go to jail, Azam Khan kept crying in front of the media and telling the story of the oppression he faced. But the action of UP government and administration is not stopping on Azam Khan. Azam Khan and his family formally separated from the trust in early 2026.
What action is being taken against Jauhar University now?
Rampur District Magistrate Ajay Kumar Dwivedi said that this action was initiated after receiving the report of the regional junior engineer regarding construction without permission in the university campus. He said that the management was given an opportunity to present its stand by issuing a notice, after which the institute filed its reply on July 8. The case was heard on 15 July. During the hearing, the university argued that the university is located in Singankheda village, which did not come under the jurisdiction of Rampur Development Authority before 27 September 2024, hence there was no need to take construction approval from RDA. The university also said that most of the buildings were constructed long ago, hence they cannot be declared illegal on the basis of existing rules. Rampur Development Authority, defending its action, said that it was mandatory to obtain permission from the competent authority at the time of construction, whether the area was later included in the jurisdiction of the Development Authority or not. According to the authority’s order, Rampur Zilla Panchayat records show that only the plans of the Medical College Building and the Academic Building were approved while no valid permission was taken for the remaining 38 buildings. Johar University has not been bulldozed yet but the road passing through its campus has been declared a ‘common road’ by PWD. A ‘sign board’ has been put up at the main gate of the university stating that this road is open for the general public. This is a three kilometer long road, which was built by PWD in 2016-17 during the tenure of Akhilesh Yadav at a cost of approximately Rs 17.16 crore. The university administration had closed the gate in 2019, due to which movement on the route was stopped.
Saharanpur’s Glocal University on target
Glocal University was established in 2012 in Mirzapur of Saharanpur district. Saharanpur is a border district of UP. This university is in the area adjacent to the border of Uttarakhand and Haryana. Built on more than 350 acres of land, this university has been made world class. This university was established under the Uttar Pradesh University Act. It is also approved by UGP but the character of its creator Mohammad Iqbal is said to be tainted. Good days could not come during Yogi government. Haji Iqbal, considered close to Mayawati, was a member of the UP Legislative Council from 2009 to 2015. During this time he also established this university. But as time passed after Yogi Raj came to power, Haji Iqbal and his properties started coming on the radar of investigating agencies.
Why was action taken against former MLC Iqbal?
Haji Iqbal once ran a grocery shop. He also worked as a honey seller. Their area is connected to the mountains of Uttarakhand. There are small drains and rivers there. There is a lot of sand mining here. Haji Iqbal also jumped into this water and took out so much sand that even the shadow of poverty went away from him. When money became available, social status also increased. He entered politics and when the BSP government was formed, he joined them. He became MLC but the stain of illegal mining on his name became a canker with the change of government. More than 50 criminal cases were registered against Haji Iqbal and his close relatives in Saharanpur and other places. In 2022, a case was filed against him under the Gangster Act. Fearing arrest, Haji Iqbal fled to Dubai. Here the administration continued to take action against his properties and family. Some members of the family including the son were sent to jail. At the same time, taking action in the illegal mining case, ED attached 121 acres of land and buildings of the university in 2024. Its price was said to be around Rs 4440 crore. The university is run by the Abdul Waheed Educational and Charitable Trust, which is named after Iqbal’s son. The allegations were that the money earned from illegal mining was transferred in the name of the trust. Then that money was used to buy land for the university and build the university.
Overall, Glocal University is still running, but in name only. No one can say when his existence shattered like sand. Similar condition appears to be in Johar University. The dream that Azam Khan had seen seems to be buried under the bulldozer of the UP government.
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