Jamia suspends professor for 'deliberately failing non-Muslim students', inquiry initiated

Jamia Millia Islamia University on Wednesday had suspended a professor on grounds of 'communal disharmony'. The professor had allegedly failed 15 non-Muslim students on communal grounds and then tweeted about the same. Calling it serious misconduct, the University suspended him pending inquiry.

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The University posted a tweeted on March 26 where they mentioned that Dr. Abrar Ahmad an Assistant Professor at the University had "tweeted in public domain" regarding failing 15 non-Muslim students in an exam and that it was serious misconduct inciting communal disharmony under the Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1964. 

The University stated that he had been suspended till pending inquiry.

'Have been misunderstood'

Ahmad, who teaches at the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University, reportedly claimed that his tweet was meant as sarcasm.  In a written explanation to a publication, he said that the tweet "was satire, parody," to emphasise "how minorities are being targeted by CAA" and he has been “misunderstood”.

The professor concerned has now deleted the tweet and his account on the social networking site does not exist anymore.  

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Protests against CAA

Jamia Millia Islamia is a reputed Central University based in the national capital. In the recent past, it has been in the headlines for its strong stand against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. The students had organsied protests against the Act which led to clashes with the police.  

On December 15, the university witnessed violent clashes after students were stopped from marching to the parliament protesting the Citizenship Act. While students stated that police resorted to lathi-charge and tear gas, the police have claimed that they were forced to do so after students refused to stop their march when requested. Police claimed that students broke barricades and indulged in stone-pelting at police personnel, causing injuries to 12 policemen. Over 100 students have been injured with one student losing an eye. Police also claim that some protestors who were vandalising public property had resorted to stone-pelting and had rushed into the university, triggering police entry into the campus. 

READ: Jamia University Student Files Rs 1 Cr Compensation Case Against Delhi Police

In February, the Jamia Coordination Committee (JCC) shared a CCTV footage of Delhi police and paramilitary forces hitting students in the library of the University on 15 December 2019. The CCTV footage was reportedly from the first-floor reading hall in the university and shows police dressed in full riot gear hitting the students. The police had stated that they would be investigating the footage. 

READ: Former Delhi LG Najeeb Jung Demands Investigation Into Jamia 'library' Incident