A day after the Rampur Development Authority (RDA) ordered demolition proceedings against 38 buildings at Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar University, the dream project of former Uttar Pradesh minister and jailed senior Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan, the controversy escalated on Thursday as political voices condemned the move, while the fate of nearly 3,000 students of the university hangs in the balance as the institution faces the gravest crisis in its history.
Facing demolition notices for most of its campus, fresh legal action over alleged fire safety violations and growing political confrontation, the university now finds itself fighting for its survival.
As the political storm raged, opposition parties—the Samajwadi Party and the Congress—attacked the government, while the ruling BJP hit back at the opposition over the demolition issue.
At the center of the controversy is the RDA’s claim that only two of the 40 buildings of the university have legally approved construction maps, while the remaining 38 have been declared unauthorized and liable for demolition. The university is also accused of fire-safety violations.
The decision was taken after District Magistrate Ajay Kumar Dwivedi rejected the university management’s explanation during a personal hearing. Rampur Development Authority has given 15 days time to the institution to remove the allegedly unauthorized structures, otherwise it will carry out demolition.
Dwivedi said, “As per the rules, the institution has been given 15 days to demolish the illegal construction itself, failing which the RDA will take demolition action.”
According to the authority, around 82,309.80 square meters was constructed without approved building plans. The RDA has issued a notice to the Johar Trust, directing it to remove the structures within an extended period of 15 days, otherwise demolition proceedings under the Uttar Pradesh Urban Planning and Development Act, 1973 will be initiated.
Azam Khan’s wife Tazeen Fatima reached Johar University on Thursday and got angry after seeing the policemen deployed on the university campus.
He said, “We have 15 days to respond to the allegations against us. In such a situation, the police and administration cannot forcibly occupy the university campus like this. The entire action is being taken with malicious intentions and a sense of revenge.”
Tazeen Fatima asked the police personnel deployed at the university to leave the campus. After this she went to her office inside the university, where she met the university management and Samajwadi Party leaders. During the meeting, they reportedly discussed the strategy to challenge the move of the Rampur Development Authority. They also discussed legally challenging the District Magistrate’s order in court.
The huge campus of the university comprises academic blocks, hostels, laboratories, libraries and vocational institutes.
However, controversy arose when officials examined construction records and concluded that most of the buildings lacked approved maps, zoning clearance and statutory clearances. While the trust that manages the university has argued that the construction began when the land was outside the jurisdiction of the RDA and clearance was obtained through the district panchayat, the authority has said that the buildings were built without valid permission from the competent authority.
Additionally, a statewide fire safety audit initiated after the devastating coaching center fire in Lucknow, which killed 15 people, exposed several shortcomings at Jauhar University. Fire department officials reportedly found that many campus buildings lacked mandatory fire safety equipment and emergency exit routes. The university was served a notice seeking clarification within seven days, but officials say no response was received within the stipulated period. The Rampur district administration is now preparing to initiate legal action over the alleged violations.
As the institute’s legal troubles mount, the immediate concern has focused on safeguarding the academic future of its students. Rampur District Magistrate Ajay Kumar Dwivedi held discussions with Moradabad-based Guru Jambheshwar University regarding the possibility of transferring students should circumstances require such a move.
Vice Chancellor Professor Sachin Maheshwari confirmed that consultations have taken place and preparations are underway to accommodate the students of Jauhar University through colleges affiliated to Guru Jambheshwar University. A decision on the proposal is expected soon.
Jauhar University currently has around 3,000 students enrolled from Rampur, Bareilly, Moradabad, Kanpur and many other districts. It offers professional courses in engineering and medicine as well as undergraduate programs in arts and commerce. Officials say that if student transfer becomes necessary, efforts will be made to ensure continuity of academic programs without any disruption.
The demolition notice and possible legal action have triggered a sharp political reaction.
Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav accused the Bharatiya Janata Party government of looking at education through a communal lens. In a post on X, he questioned why the government was targeting educational institutions while ignoring illegal structures allegedly linked to its own supporters.
“BJP sees communalism even in education. Education, teachers, students and employment after education are not included in BJP’s agenda at all. When will BJP demolish the illegal structures of its unregistered affiliates? If the affiliates themselves are unregistered, then how can their buildings, offices and institutions be considered legitimate?” Yadav wrote on X.
Uttar Pradesh Congress President Ajay Rai also criticized the state government, alleging that the action against Jauhar University was aimed at diverting public attention from the controversies related to Ram Temple. He claimed that the demolition notice and other recent government decisions were politically motivated to divert attention from larger issues facing the state government.
Samajwadi Party national spokesperson Abdul Hafeez Gandhi urged the government to avoid demolition if legal options were available.
“While any legal or regulatory violations must be addressed strictly in accordance with the law, demolition should be the last resort. If the deficiencies are technical or procedural and can be rectified under law, the government should explore all legitimate options, including regularization wherever legally permitted, rather than destroying valuable educational infrastructure.”
Defending the government’s position, Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak said the administration is committed to implementing the law uniformly and will not allow any illegal activity.
In a latest development, the Uttar Pradesh Public Works Department (PWD) has declared the main road passing through the Mohammad Ali Jauhar University campus as a public road and put up signboards at the main gate of the university that it is open for public use.
What is Jauhar University?
Mohammad Ali Jauhar University is a private institution located in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh. The university, named after Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar, established in 2006 by the Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust, was established as a private university through an Act passed by the Uttar Pradesh Legislature (UP Act No. 19 of 2006) and approved by the Governor of the state on 16 June 2006, when Samajwadi Party founder Mulayam Singh Yadav was the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. It was officially recognized as a university by the Government of UP in 2012; It offers higher education in a huge campus spread over 250 acres. The current faculty strength of the university is 90 professors and instructors who teach 24 subjects ranging from engineering, medicine and law to humanities.
Azam Khan’s dream project
The university was conceived as a dream project by its founder Mohammad Azam Khan, who served as Chancellor for life, and his son Abdullah Azam Khan as Pro-Chancellor of the university.
Earlier this year, Khan and his family formally resigned from the university’s governing trust.
The institution is named in honor of Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar (1878–1931), a famous Indian freedom fighter, scholar, poet and journalist born in Rampur. Educated at Aligarh and Oxford University, Johar was a great nationalist who co-founded Jamia Millia Islamia University and launched influential anti-colonial newspapers such as The Comrade. He served as the National President of the Indian National Congress in 1923 and led the historic Khilafat Movement along with Mahatma Gandhi.
son azam in jail
Azam Khan and his son, Abdullah Azam Khan, have been in jail since November 17, 2025. The father-son duo was taken into custody straight from the Rampur court after being convicted in a double PAN card forgery case and sentenced to 7 years in jail (Azam Khan’s jail term was extended to 10 years by a sessions court in May 2026).
pending cases
Azam Khan: Out of the overall lifetime history of over 100 registered cases, around 77 cases are pending against him in Rampur court alone.
Abdullah Azam Khan: Around 40 cases are pending against him in the court.
commitment
Azam Khan: He has been convicted in eight cases. These include a conviction for hate speech, a fake birth certificate case, a double PAN card forgery case and a conviction related to the derogatory “shoe” comment in May 2026.
Abdullah Azam Khan: He has been convicted in three cases so far. These include the 2023 fake birth certificate case, the November 2025 dual PAN card forgery case and the December 2025 fake passport forgery case.
