Aligarh Muslim University Minority Status: SC Overrules 1967 Judgement

In a 4-3 majority, the Supreme Court overturned a key 1967 judgement on the Aligarh Muslim University, which stripped of its minority status. However, it left the decision with a three-judge bench to take a call on whether the institution should be granted this status again.

The Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud struck down a previous ruling, which reiterated that an institution incorporated via a statute cannot claim minority status. He put forth the question before a regular bench.

Namely, Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta, and SC Sharma were the dissenting judges, while Justices Sanjiv Khanna (who will be the next Chief Justice), JB Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra held the majority. Previously, the bench reserved its verdict on February 1.

Majority verdict

CJI underscored the importance of identifying the university's actual point of origin.

The court said that AMU was 'incorporated' by imperial legislation; it doesn't mean that it was 'established' by members of a minority community. AMU was founded in 1875 as the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College. It was converted to a university by the British Raj in 1920.

The court noted that the government could regulate minority educational institutions as long as it does not infringe on the character of such institutes.

Dissent

While observing that a minority community should hold control over the institutions serving its peoples, Justice Sharma reiterated that it should give its students the option of a secular education. Justice Datta ruled the AMU is not a minority institution.

Case Background

An amendment in 1951 to the imperial law of the AMU Act abolished compulsory religious instructions for Muslim students. However, in the opinion of the Chief Justice-led majority, the second amendment in 1981 did a ‘half-hearted job’. Notably, in 1967 the constitution held that AMU is a central university.

While arguing the case in February, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and others said that AMU received funds totalling over ₹5,000 crore between 2019-2023 from the centre, thereby surrendering its minority character.

In 2006 the Allahabad High Court held that AMU is not a minority institution. Following this, the Congress-led UPA government at the centre appealed the verdict by referring the case to the Supreme Court.

Previously, the BJP-led union government sought to revert to the top court's 1967 verdict.