'We are ensuring smooth return for students'

Aligarh Muslim University vice chancellor Professor P K Abdul Aziz has denied students' charge that university authorities have done nothing to ensure smooth return of AMU students living in hostels following closure of the university after the students went on rampage on Sunday night following the murder of an engineering student Mazhar Naeem.

"The charge is wrong. We have organised over 1,600 buses free of cost to send the students back to their residences who live within 100 km of campus. AMU public relations officer Rahat Abrar is working round the clock along with senior members of various faculties of AMU to help the students," Azim told rediff.com in an exclusive interview on Monday evening at a guest house where he is put up temporarily.

"Two special bogies have been attached to each train passing through Aligarh. The staff has made arrangements to provide food for the students who are still packing their bags. Even financial aid is being provided by the university," Aziz added.

When asked that the students say no bogies are attached to any of the trains stopping at Aligarh, Azim replied, "We have already requested the railway authorities and the university staff is looking after this problem."

AMU authorities denied that only 30 per cent students have left the hotels.

"According to our information, more than 60 per cent students have returned home," Aziz said.

"I joined as vice chancellor in June 2007 and it came as a rude shock to me that the world famous VC's lodge was set on fire by the students leading the agitation. My pictures and clothes were burnt. I am staying in a guest house and conducting my day-to-day duties there," he said.

When will the university resume its normal functioning is a million dollor question to which even the new vice chancellor does not know have an answer.

"It is pretty tough to answer. Right now the university stands closed sine die. We have a lot of work to do before the students can resume their studies. We have already evicted large number of non-students from the AMU premises. My staff has not been able to evict the rest because of pressure from the student lobbies and local politicians. This is the first time I have come across an incident of violence in the university, particularly in AMU," Aziz said.

The biggest challenge before him is how to stop the growing criminalisation of student politics, which is leading to a number of violent incidents including murders and rapes.

"Three murders in AMU in five months is just too much. Then we had girl students agitating for rapes on the campus. We must find a solution. The CBI is investigating the earlier murder cases, but so far nothing has come out the investigations. In the Mazhar Naeem case, the FIR written is not even a proper one," Aziz admitted.

Inspector General of Aligarh zone S N Singh has constituted a special team to investigate the murder. Mazhar's body was sent to Meerut medical hospital for post-mortem.