Explainer | Aligarh Muslim University Minority Status Case : Issues & Arguments In Supreme Court

A Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court has reserved judgment on the case concerning the minority status of the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU).Being recognised constitutionally as an “Institution of National Importance” under Entry 63 of List I, AMU is the only one of the two educational institutions (the other being Benaras Hindu University) which has been bestowed this title. Founded in 1920 through the AMU Act, the university's founding history can be considered in three phases : (1) from 1870-1877, the genesis of the idea of setting up a university for the Muslim community came into the picture, the Muhammadin Anglo-Oriental (MAO) college was established; (2) 1877-1910 the Muslim community rallied to convert the MAO and the government under pressure agreed to convert the college and (3) 1910-1920, where the founders of the Muslim university actively engaged and succeeded in their desire to convert and incorporate the MAO into the present AMU.The issue of granting 'minority status' to AMU under Article 30 of the Constitution has had a chequered history. In this article, we attempt to simplify the litigation history, legal nuances and Courtroom observations across time periods.What is 'Minority Status'? Article 30 of the Indian Constitution provides certain rights to religious and linguistic minorities in India. This article specifically deals with the right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions. Under the fundamental right, such minority institutions can make reservations in their admission policies for the betterment of member belonging to their community. The provision strives to give assurance of protecting their minority character. It aims to uphold the cultural and educational autonomy of minority institutions while allowing for reasonable regulations by the state in matters of education.The Legal Antecedents That Paved the Way For Reference To The 7 Judges BenchI. Azeez Basha v. Union of India - The Genesis of the ConundrumIn 1967, the Supreme Court of India had in question pertaining to the changes brought into the Orginal AMU Act by the amendments made through the 1951 and 1965 Amendment Act held that AMU was a non-minority institution. The bench of the CJI KN Wanchoo and Justices RS Bachawat, V. Ramaswami, GK Mitter and KS Hegde took into account the historical antecedents of the formation of the university and held that while the founder of AMU was a Muslim leader, it cannot be said that AMU was established and administered by a minority under Article 30. The reason given for holding so was an emphasis on the fact that the University was established under a Pre-Constitutional Statute and was thus established by a Statute and not a minority community.II. Coming of the 1981 Amendment ActThe AMU Act of 1920 came under the amendment for the 4th time in 1981. Three key changes were brought in to the legislation, firstly, Section 2(1) of the 1981 Act redefined the expressed “University” to mean an Institution “ Established by the Muslims of India”; secondly, Section 5 of the Amendment Act was modified to include “ Educational and Cultural Advancement of Muslims in India” within the foundational purposes of the Institution; and thirdly, removal of the term “ Establish and” from the Preamble of the 1920 Act. These changes were introduced in light of the recommendations made by the Beg Committee and the Minorities Commission of India.These changes had the effect of giving minority status to the AMU, diluting the judgment in Azeez Basha.III. AMU v. Malay Shukla - The Allahabad High Court Judgement of 2006The Allahabad High Court was deliberating on a legal challenge to the reservation policy for Muslim candidates. This policy involved allocating 50% of post-graduate course seats, originally designated for qualified MBBS doctors, by the University. The University argued that the Aligarh Muslim University (Amendment Act 1981) altered the foundation established by the Basha Judgment. However, the single bench concluded that the University does not qualify as a minority institution. Affirming the decision of the Single bench, the division bench of the Allahabad High Court determined that, despite being founded by a minority, if it was never administered or claimed to be administered as such, it cannot be designated as a minority institution. The HC held : (a) relying upon the ratio in Basha, the AMU continues to be a non-minority institution and cannot claim otherwise under Article 30; (b) S. 2 (1) and 5(2)(c) of the 1981 Act are considered invalid; (c) The removal of the words ''establish and' from the preamble of the 1920 Act by the 1981 Act is invalid and those words are restored to the preamble; (d) claim of the 50% Muslim quota for PGC declared unconstitutional for all and future purposes; (e) The Union's communication dated 25.2.2005 vetting the purported minority status of the Aligarh Muslim University by permitting their claim of Muslim reservation is quashed and...

Explainer | Aligarh Muslim University Minority Status Case : Issues & Arguments In Supreme Court

Anmol Kaur Bawa

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