Aligarh Muslim University Judgement

Why in news?

The recent judgement by the 7-judge bench of Supreme Court on AMU case redefined minority rights and laid down a holistic test to determine the ‘minority character’ of an educational institution.

What is Minority Educational Institution?

• Minority Institution – An institution established and administered for the educational development, religious or secular education, of the community by the minorities.

• Minority – Though Minority” is not defined in the Indian Constitution, it recognizes religious and linguistic minorities.

• The Central Government has notified six religious minority communities viz. Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist, Parsi and Jain.
• Fundamental right - All minorities, whether based on religion or language, shall have the fundamental right under Article 30(1) to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.
• NMCEI - National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions (NCMEI) grants minority status to educational institutions.
• State governments also grant minority educational status to institutions within the state.
• Benefits of minority status- Greater control over their day-to-day administration from student admission to the hiring of teaching and non-teaching staff. 
• Student admissions - A minority institution can admit non-minority students without losing its minority character.
• No SC/ST reservation - Article 15(5) introduced in 2006, exempted minority educational institutions from reserving seats for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
• Minority reservation - It can reserve up to 50% of seats for minority students, providing flexibility while still prioritizing minority representation.

In the T.M.A Pai Foundation (2002) case, the SC clarified that a ‘minority’ is to be determined by the concerned State’s demography, not the national population.

What is the background of the case?

• Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College – In 1875, Sir Syed Ahmad Khan founded the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental (MAO) College in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh.
• The college was designed after the British educational system, with the goal of integrating Western science and literature with Islamic subjects.
• University status – The Aligarh Muslim University Act, 1920 by the Indian Parliament, elevated the MAO College to the status of a Aligarh Muslim University (AMU).
• The 1951 amendment – It took away compulsory religious instructions for Muslim students at the AMU.
• S. Azeez Basha v Union of India case (1967) – The judgement took away the minority status of the AMU In 1967 stating that AMU was neither established nor administered by the Muslim minority.
• It came into existence through an Act of the central legislature and did not, therefore, qualify as a minority institution under Article 30 of the Constitution.
• AMU amendment act (1981) – It Conferred complete minority character to the AMU.
• 50% reservation for muslim – AMU introduced the reservation for Muslim students in 2005.
• Removal of minority status - Allahabad High Court judgement (2006) struck down both 50% reservation for Muslim and the AMU Amendment Act (1981) .
• Appeal -  Government filed the appeal before the Supreme Court against the 2006 verdict of the Allahabad High Court.
• Constitution bench – Following this, the Supreme Court constituted a seven-member Bench to deal with a reference arising out of the 2006 order passed by the Allahabad High Court.

What are the constitutional tests to determine the minority status?

• Genesis - Trace the origin of the idea for the establishment of the institution to determine the brain behind the establishment.
• For proof, a variety of sources could be considered — letters, correspondence with other community members or government officials, etc.
• The link must point towards one member of the minority or a group from the community.
• Purpose – It must “predominantly” be for the benefit of the minority community, even if it is not the sole purpose.
• Implementation – Examining the source of funding, land donations and constructors of the infrastructure.

What are the significances of the supreme court  judgement?

• Overturns Azeez Basha case judgment – New Judgement held that Statutory recognition to a minority institution doesn’t remove its minority status.
• Purpose - While the purpose of establishing a minority institution should be the conservation of language and culture, it need not be the only purpose.
• Admission - A minority institution will not lose its minority character by admitting students belonging to non-minorities.
• Administration - The administration of an minority educational institution does not need to be handled by the minority community.
• Its administration must reflect a commitment to protecting and promoting minority interests.
• Education - Secular education can be imparted at a minority institution without affecting its minority character.
• Government aid - If a minority institution has received aid from the government, no student can be forced to participate in religious instruction.
• If the institution is fully maintained out of state funds, it cannot provide religious instruction.
• However, these institutions must still be considered minority institutions.
• AMU status – Supreme Court further constituted three-member bench in its recent judgement to decide minority character of AMU.

Reference

The Indian Express |AMU Minority Status Case Judgment