BSP chief Mayawati welcomes halt on demolition of buildings at Jauhar University in Rampur
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], July 28 (ANI): Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati on Tuesday welcomed the decision to halt the demolition of buildings at the Mohammad Ali Jauhar University in Rampur, and urged the Uttar Pradesh government to adopt a policy of regularising educational institutions instead of razing them with bulldozers.
Taking to X, the former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister termed the halting of the Rampur Development Authority's action against 38 teaching buildings of the university--established by the family trust of Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Azam Khan--as an "appropriate" step. The demolition action had been initiated due to the absence of approved building maps and other required documents.
1. यूपी के ज़िला रामपुर में समाजवादी पार्टी के नेता मोहम्मद आज़म ख़ान के पारिवारिक ट्रस्ट द्वारा स्वतंत्रता सेनानी मोहम्मद अली जौहर के नाम पर स्थापित यूनिवर्सिटी की 38 शिक्षण इमारतों को, उसका स्वीकृत नक्शा आदि के अभाव में, ध्वस्त करने की रामपुर विकास प्राधिकरण की कार्रवाई पर अब…
— Mayawati (@Mayawati) July 28, 2026
"The decision to halt the Rampur Development Authority's action of demolishing 38 teaching buildings of the university established in the name of freedom fighter Mohammad Ali Jauhar by the family trust of Samajwadi Party leader Mohammad Azam Khan in Rampur district of UP, due to the absence of its approved map and other documents, is appropriate and deserves a welcome," Mayawati stated.
Broadening her appeal, the BSP chief advised the state government to reconsider its approach toward any educational institution across the state that may have failed to comply strictly with construction regulations. She emphasised that running bulldozers over such buildings disproportionately harms students.
"In any case, not just Jauhar University but if there are other educational institutions across Uttar Pradesh that have not been able to properly comply with government rules and regulations in their construction and other aspects, then instead of taking strict action to run bulldozers and demolish them, the government should adopt a policy of taking necessary actions to properly regularise all of them," she added.
Mayawati stressed that such a regularisation policy would ensure that the academic pursuits and futures of the students studying in these institutions are not disrupted.
Concluding her statement, she appealed to the state administration to view her suggestion through the lens of public welfare. "It is hoped that the government will certainly consider this public-interest advice from the BSP sympathetically," the BSP chief said.
Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir's Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) President Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday criticised the proposed demolition of 38 buildings at Mohammad Ali Jauhar University in Rampur, calling the move an act of "hatred and vengeance" and urging people to stand with the protesting students.
In a post shared on X, Mufti wrote, "Destroying an institution of learning like Jauhar University displays nothing but hatred and vengeance.
"She further urged Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to draw lessons from the recent protests at Jantar Mantar, saying, "Yogi should take a lesson from Jantar Mantar and see how the youth of this country are rejecting the politics of hate and division. Stand with the protesting students."
Mufti was responding to a post by Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav, who said that the party's MPs and MLAs were participating in a protest by students seeking to "save Jauhar University" in Rampur.
"The 'Protect Education' movement will also triumph! To encourage the students who have sat on a dharna to save Jauhar University in Rampur, our MPs and MLAs are participating," Yadav said in his post.
He questioned why the Uttar Pradesh government could not regularise Jauhar University's constructions when similar constructions could allegedly be regularised under administrative orders.
"If the BJP government can regularise other constructions based on the UP government's administrative order, then why not Jauhar University? Why this discrimination and malice against Jauhar University?" Yadav asked.
The Samajwadi Party has demanded that the proposed demolition be stopped, alleging that the action would adversely affect the future of students.
"Our collective demand is that the BJP should not throw the future of our youth into the fire of its vengeance," he said.
The remarks come amid a proposed demolition at Mohammad Ali Jauhar University after the Rampur Development Authority (RDA) ordered the removal of 38 allegedly unauthorised buildings on the campus.
The RDA issued a notice to the Jauhar Trust, which runs the university, on June 28, alleging that 82,309.80 square metres of construction within the campus was carried out illegally. According to the authority, 38 blocks were constructed without approved building maps, while only two buildings had received prior permission from the District Panchayat.
The authority said the secretary of the Jauhar Trust failed to produce approval documents within the stipulated period and granted the trust an additional 15 days to remove the 38 structures, warning that demolition proceedings would be initiated if it failed to comply.
Earlier, Leader of Opposition in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly Mata Prasad Pandey accused the state government of acting with " political malice" and submitted a memorandum to the District Magistrate demanding an immediate halt to the proposed demolition.
The Samajwadi Party said saving the educational institution was important for protecting the future of thousands of poor, backward, Dalit, minority and deprived students.
The demolition order was passed by the Vice-Chairman of the Rampur Development Authority, who also serves as the Rampur District Magistrate, under provisions of the Uttar Pradesh Urban Planning and Development Act, 1973.
The university was founded by senior Samajwadi Party leader Mohammad Azam Khan, who is currently incarcerated in Rampur. (ANI)
