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ALIGARH: There is a quiet row erupting in theAligarh Muslim University between students who call themselves liberals and the other faction that wants the famous varsity to go back to certain tenets of traditional Islam, like the use of burqa by women and holding of namaz prayers five times a day.
The clash of ideologies, which has cleaved the student community in half, and simmering for a while now, has become even more apparent after a bunch of pupils who call themselves Students of AMU put up posters of burqa-clad women for a seminar that, ironically, was on 'Women Empowerment: An Alternative in Focus'. In fact, senior lawyer Vrinda Grover, who was invited for the talk, was quoted by an English daily saying she pulled out of it after "she came to know about the group and its activities".
Shahab Ahmad, a fourth year student of law at AMU, and one of those who feels the liberal space in the campus is under attack, asked, "Why is AMU being turned into a madarsa? Should it become Aligarh Millat University? It's a central university, for god's sake."
Ahmad would have many students empathizing with him. Already, boys are reprimanded for wearing shorts in the hostel; even a kurta can land you in trouble. Girls can't wear sleeveless suits or capris. And, of course, no dancing in the campus, even during hostel nights. Terms like "vulgar" and "obscene" are liberally thrown around if women wear anything that is perceived to be remotely "glamorous".
The liberals, as some of them like to call themselves, are protesting the use of public spaces like the hostel common rooms for religious activities, like tajweed and dawa'ah, and for Quranic lessons. Complaining about this, another student said, "Practicing Muslim students have a namaz room in the hostel vicinity, but even then our common rooms are used for these activities.
The university should respect the need of liberal spaces. As soon as certain groups enter the common rooms, the television is switched off and we are asked to leave." On weekends, some of the members of Students of AMU try to convince others to be part of the jamaat.
Defending the group, Abdul Rouf, a member of Students of AMU, said, "We don't force anyone. Such events have been happening in the university forever. Ask the administration why they are allowed."
Adding to the resentment of the liberal groups is the fact that non-AMU members of Students of AMU, too, have access to hostels for preaching purposes. They publish books that speak about how financial independence for a woman is un-Islamic. Sometimes they are told that if circumstances force women to work, they should follow rules like wearing the hijab, talking in soft tones and maintaining a distance from men.
Don’t turn AMU into a madrassa: Students - The Times of India
The clash of ideologies, which has cleaved the student community in half, and simmering for a while now, has become even more apparent after a bunch of pupils who call themselves Students of AMU put up posters of burqa-clad women for a seminar that, ironically, was on 'Women Empowerment: An Alternative in Focus'. In fact, senior lawyer Vrinda Grover, who was invited for the talk, was quoted by an English daily saying she pulled out of it after "she came to know about the group and its activities".
Shahab Ahmad, a fourth year student of law at AMU, and one of those who feels the liberal space in the campus is under attack, asked, "Why is AMU being turned into a madarsa? Should it become Aligarh Millat University? It's a central university, for god's sake."
Ahmad would have many students empathizing with him. Already, boys are reprimanded for wearing shorts in the hostel; even a kurta can land you in trouble. Girls can't wear sleeveless suits or capris. And, of course, no dancing in the campus, even during hostel nights. Terms like "vulgar" and "obscene" are liberally thrown around if women wear anything that is perceived to be remotely "glamorous".
The liberals, as some of them like to call themselves, are protesting the use of public spaces like the hostel common rooms for religious activities, like tajweed and dawa'ah, and for Quranic lessons. Complaining about this, another student said, "Practicing Muslim students have a namaz room in the hostel vicinity, but even then our common rooms are used for these activities.
The university should respect the need of liberal spaces. As soon as certain groups enter the common rooms, the television is switched off and we are asked to leave." On weekends, some of the members of Students of AMU try to convince others to be part of the jamaat.
Defending the group, Abdul Rouf, a member of Students of AMU, said, "We don't force anyone. Such events have been happening in the university forever. Ask the administration why they are allowed."
Adding to the resentment of the liberal groups is the fact that non-AMU members of Students of AMU, too, have access to hostels for preaching purposes. They publish books that speak about how financial independence for a woman is un-Islamic. Sometimes they are told that if circumstances force women to work, they should follow rules like wearing the hijab, talking in soft tones and maintaining a distance from men.
Don’t turn AMU into a madrassa: Students - The Times of India
