Agencies | New Delhi:
Jamia Millia Islamia Registrar Mahtab Alam on Saturday accused Congress MPs Imran Masood and Imran Pratapgarhi of instigating students protesting on the university campus, alleging that the leaders had entered the premises illegally and were supporting the agitation from outside.
Alam said the university administration had lodged a complaint with the police and sought action against those allegedly involved. He urged students not to be influenced by outsiders, warning that the ongoing agitation could affect the institution’s reputation.
“Absolutely, students from outside have come. They are trying to spoil the atmosphere. Our university is peaceful. You saw that Imran Masood came yesterday. Imran Pratapgarhi came through the back wall, and he broke the lock to get in. So these are illegal people,” Alam said.
He also named the two Congress MPs while alleging that some other political representatives, including members of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), had been supporting the protesters.
“We saw the Congress leaders come here. I’m taking Imran Pratapgarhi’s name, I’m taking Imran Masood’s name. A few others like that came there. These were MIM people too. They’re inciting them and backing them from behind,” he said.
The allegations come amid a continuing student agitation over the restoration of the Jamia Students’ Union and the announcement of an election schedule for the 2026–27 academic session.
Alam said he had met students on hunger strike who wanted the university administration to specify when elections would be held and when the elected students’ union would be restored. They had also sought the withdrawal of disciplinary action against students they consider innocent.
“I had gone to meet the kids who are fasting. They asked us to give a deadline. They asked us when elections will happen,” the registrar said.
“The students are ready, but our leaders from outside aren’t ready,” he added.
Students have been protesting since October 12, demanding the restoration of the elected union and a clear timetable for elections. The university has been without an elected students’ union since 2006, with the last elections held in 2005.
Their demands also include the withdrawal of disciplinary action against protesters and concerns relating to campus facilities, attendance rules, hostels, scholarships and research stipends.
The agitation intensified on October 17 after university authorities attempted to remove demonstrators from Ghalib Lawns near Gate No. 7. The administration subsequently formed committees to engage with students and prepare a draft constitution for the union. A five-member committee has been tasked with submitting the draft by December 20, though protesters maintain that their immediate demand for an election schedule remains unresolved.
The controversy escalated on Friday after Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) national spokesperson Vinod Bansal shared photographs on social media platform X purportedly showing slogans such as “Free Kashmir”, “Free Palestine”, “Free Sharjeel Imam” and “RSS Go Back” written on campus walls. Slogans targeting the university’s Vice-Chancellor were also reported.
“It is extremely unfortunate and a deep conspiracy to desecrate the temple of education that slogans such as ‘Free Kashmir’, ‘Free Palestine’, ‘Free Sharjeel Imam’, ‘VC Go Back’ and ‘RSS Go Back’ have been written at the prestigious Jamia Millia Islamia University in the country’s capital,” Bansal said.
The VHP called on the university administration and police to identify those responsible and take action. Bansal also questioned whether attempts were being made to turn the university into a “hub of anti-India activities”.
The identity of those responsible for the alleged graffiti has not been publicly established.
Congress MP Imran Masood distanced himself from the slogans, asserting that Kashmir was an integral part of India. He also defended the students’ demand for restoration of the union and questioned the action taken against protesters.
“Those who want to break this movement should understand that Kashmir is an integral part of India. We would even give our lives to keep Kashmir as an integral part of India,” Masood said.
The university administration’s allegations against the Congress MPs and the controversy over the graffiti have added a political dimension to the students’ agitation, whose central demand remains the restoration of an elected union and clarity on the timeline for holding elections.
