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Jammu and Kashmir's Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) President Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday criticised the proposed demolition of 38 buildings at Mohammad Ali Jauhar University in Rampur, calling the move an act of "hatred and vengeance" and urging people to stand with the protesting students.
In a post shared on X, Mufti wrote, "Destroying an institution of learning like Jauhar University displays nothing but hatred and vengeance." She further urged Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to draw lessons from the recent protests at Jantar Mantar, saying, "Yogi should take a lesson from Jantar Mantar and see how the youth of this country are rejecting the politics of hate and division. Stand with the protesting students." https://x.com/MehboobaMufti/status/2081257362514690065 Mufti was responding to a post by Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav, who said that the party's MPs and MLAs were participating in a protest by students seeking to "save Jauhar University" in Rampur. "The 'Protect Education' movement will also triumph! To encourage the students who have sat on a dharna to save Jauhar University in Rampur, our MPs and MLAs are participating," Yadav said in his post. He questioned why the Uttar Pradesh government could not regularise Jauhar University's constructions when similar constructions could allegedly be regularised under administrative orders. "If the BJP government can regularise other constructions based on the UP government's administrative order, then why not Jauhar University? Why this discrimination and malice against Jauhar University?" Yadav asked. The Samajwadi Party has demanded that the proposed demolition be stopped, alleging that the action would adversely affect the future of students. "Our collective demand is that the BJP should not throw the future of our youth into the fire of its vengeance," he said. The remarks come amid a proposed demolition at Mohammad Ali Jauhar University after the Rampur Development Authority (RDA) ordered the removal of 38 allegedly unauthorised buildings on the campus. The RDA issued a notice to the Jauhar Trust, which runs the university, on June 28, alleging that 82,309.80 square metres of construction within the campus was carried out illegally. According to the authority, 38 blocks were constructed without approved building maps, while only two buildings had received prior permission from the District Panchayat. The authority said the secretary of the Jauhar Trust failed to produce approval documents within the stipulated period and granted the trust an additional 15 days to remove the 38 structures, warning that demolition proceedings would be initiated if it failed to comply. Earlier, Leader of Opposition in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly Mata Prasad Pandey accused the state government of acting with "political malice" and submitted a memorandum to the District Magistrate demanding an immediate halt to the proposed demolition. The Samajwadi Party said saving the educational institution was important for protecting the future of thousands of poor, backward, Dalit, minority and deprived students. The demolition order was passed by the Vice-Chairman of the Rampur Development Authority, who also serves as the Rampur District Magistrate, under provisions of the Uttar Pradesh Urban Planning and Development Act, 1973. The university was founded by senior Samajwadi Party leader Mohammad Azam Khan, who is currently incarcerated in Rampur. (ANI)
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