Times
of India: Aligarh: Tuesday, 12 August 2014.
Dissent over
appointments, misleading advertisements for posts and action taken reports on
fictitious claims has brought Aligarh Muslim University's culture of RTI
activism to the fore. The culture has been on the rise as has been
administrative arbitrariness, claim some AMU professors.
Seasoned RTI
activist and assistant professor in the business management department Mohd
Naved Khan said, "There has been a rise despite the fact we have lost
around 30% of our university's RTI activists due to fear of the administration.
There are many reasons for it we fight the system while staying in the system,
which reacts by hitting back at us. The way it is perceived as an act of causing
harm is wrong. Through RTI, we intend to set things right as that will make AMU
better. Some have sided with the administration but activism is growing because
now I have been motivating others to file RTIs to seek answers if they feel
something is wrong."
Professor
Hasan Mateen-Ul-Islam from the statistics department said, "Some former
RTI activists have now sided with administration for favours. Those with vested
interests find it convenient to part ways." Islam had filed an RTI
regarding an advertisement for the selection committee post. His query read: an
Advertisement for Selection Committee post is defective (sic) because it does
specify which department had the opening. Islam said he was still fighting the
battle and will take it to legal action if need be.
Assistant
professor for the MBA course Asif Ali Syed showed TOI a copy of his RTI that
sought a copy of the complaints filed against him. He said, "I was told
that the administration has received complaints against me." The response
to his query read: "In order to provide copies (of the complaints) you are
required to deposit Rs 82 at the rate of Rs 2 per page for 41 pages. Syed said,
"These complaints are coming out of pure imagination."
An AMU court
member Anwaruddin Khan filed an RTI questioning the vice-chancellor's recent
appointments under Section 19(3) of AMU Act without convening a general
selection meeting. He filed an RTI seeking education details of Rashid Shaz,
who had been appointed professor in the english department. Khan said Rashid
Shaz has claimed he had passed BA (Hons) in 1982, MA in 1984, Mphil 1987 all
from AMU. The RTI response read: "Rashid Shaz, whose information is
sought, does not exist in the tabulation register both in BA(Hons) 1982 and MA
(english) 1984." Nothing was mentioned about Shaz's MPhil degree.
"I am
concerned because salaries are being paid to them, which is misappropriation of
public money," Khan said, adding, "Section 19(3) of the AMU Act
bestows emergency powers on the VC but what was the emergency in appointing
someone to the post that has been vacant for a long time. This also violates
the President's directives to VCs of all central universities that emergency
powers should not be exercised in routine matters such as appointments."
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