Jamia Journal Independent Student-run News Website of Jamia Millia Islamia (a Central University)
A written statement to the press by the Forum for Student Democracy (FSD) — of which Afroz Alam Sahil is the convener — states that in a meeting with the Vice Chancellor, held on January 27, Sahil has offered an “unconditional apology” to Jamia for his statement made on TV, accusing Jamia of embezzling funds meant for the victims of the Batla House encounter.
According to a legal notice sent to Sahil last week, Sahil, in an appearance on NDTV on January 18, accused Jamia of having misappropriated 10 lakh rupees donated by a political party for legal aid to the victims of the Batla House encounter.
He is quoted to have said, “Jamia das lakh rupiya kha gaya.”
In response to the legal notice from Jamia, Sahil had stated earlier that there was no doubt that a large donation was made to Jamia’s Old Boys Association by the Samajwadi party, which at the time he believed was a part of Jamia, and the legal notice was nothing but a tactic to intensify the ongoing “harassment” of him by Jamia authorities.
However, in this latest FSD press release after his meeting with the Vice Chancellor, Sahil is reported to have said: he was unaware of the fact that Jamia’s Old Boys Association (JOBA) was not officially a part of Jamia, even though it has its office on Jamia campus. So now that he knows, he is retracting his statement in which he accused Jamia of embezzlement and offers his sincere apologies.
Moreover, the FSD press release states: his statement in the media “was misunderstood as an act of defaming Jamia,” which was never his intention, because he holds Jamia in high regards and would never think of sullying its good name and reputation.
The FSD release concludes with the following statement:
Afroz Alam Sahil claim that Vice Chancellor has accepted his apology and even has appreciated his activism … . Sahil expressed his satisfaction with the meeting and he said that he has found VC Mr. Najeeb Jung very polite and inspiring. Even Vice Chancellor assured Sahil for his constructive activism.
