New Delhi: The hopes for the proposed AMU Centre in Kishanganj is tarnishing with every passing day as the Congress led UPA government in the Centre is not looking serious about its establishment. Since the agreement signing between the Government of Bihar and AMU administration on December 30, 2011 at Kishanganj, the file for President’s approval and fulfillment of other formalities is lying unnoticed at the Ministry of Human Resource & Development (MHRD). AMUCC (Aligarh Muslim University Coordination Committee), a non-political group working for the cause of AMU Kishanganj had met with the Congress Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, and influential leaders of Congress namely Kapil Sibal, Salman Khursheed and Oscar Fernandes the past month for immediate solution of the deadlock. Many leading Urdu and Hindi newspapers published from Delhi and Patna had published the AMUCC’s efforts in their various issues. The websites like twocircles.com, ummid.com and kishanganjbihar.com have also published the reports of AMUCC’s meeting with Congress leaders and other political leaders.
Along with meeting with the political leaders, the AMU Coordination Committee members had discussed the issue with educationists, activists and other important post holders to get a solution of AMU Kishanganj impasse. On Friday (April 27, 2012), the AMUCC Convenor Mohammad Aslam along with PRO Khalid Mubashshir and other members had met with Editors of leading Urdu Newspapers during the welcome ceremony of new Director of NCPUL Dr. Khwaja Ikramuddin at Batla House in New Delhi. Quite incidentally the editors of Urdu newspapers had the pre-fixed appointment with Minister of HRD Kapil Sibal at his residence in the evening.
Mohammad Aslam, the Convenor of AMUCC got the chance to share his thoughts with the gathering and he focused on AMU Kishanganj deadlock. Asad Reza, the Editor of Roznama Sahara had promised the AMUCC team and gathering at the venue to raise the issue before Minister of HRD Kapil Sibal. Along with Asad Reza, other editors namely Khalid Anwar (Editor Hamara Samaj), Shakil Shamshi (Editor Inquilab – North region) and Wasimul Haque (Editor Akhbar Mashriq) met with Sibal at his residence in New Delhi. The HRD Minister has said that the AMU Kishanganj issue is going to resolve very soon and the official formalities are fulfilled by the government. During the talk Kapil Sibal has mentioned that his government is fully devoted for the upliftment of minorities.
It should be noted that same Kapil Sibal had shown lucre response towards AMU Kishanganj when a delegation of AMUCC met with him last month of March 22, 2012. However, he changed his stand towards AMU Kishanganj during his meeting with Editors of leading Urdu newspapers. The change in stand of Sibal is really surprising, and the fact can’t be denied that AMUCC’s consistent effort is one of the prime reason behind this. But, till the President of India gives approval to AMU Kishanganj Centre and the MHRD fulfills the formalities, it would be too early to predict the fortune of the proposed centre. Need of the hour is that the Central Government must end the AMU Kishanganj deadlock on immediate basis, unless the Seemanchal region of Bihar will be unprivileged for long time.
