Response by AMU to an RTI for the LIU structure

One would assume a university campus to teem with students and not spooks. But the Aligarh Muslim University has the infamous distinction of employing sleuths to spy on its faculty members and students, making it possibly the only university in India to do so. While the local intelligence unit (LIU) has been around on campus for some years now, its presence was officially acknowledged only in November last year, and that too in response to an RTI request.
The unit, part of the AMU proctor’s office, comprises 13 salaried employees who are paid a total of over Rs 1.2 lakh each month by the university administration. The posts include a security inspector (Shakeel Ahmad Qureshi), a security assistant (Anwar Ahmad), four security guards and seven daily- wagers employed as guards. What is even more shocking is that the UGC or even the HRD ministry, under whose supervision the AMU functions (or at least is supposed to function), have not been informed of the presence of these plainclothes sleuths on campus.

The reply by the proctor’s office says the LIU’s aim is to “collect information” but faculty members and students have a different take. “The unit is essentially used by the university administration to harass the faculty and students it wishes to silence,” says Mohammed Naved Khan, a lecturer of business management at AMU who often uses the RTI to unearth cases of financial and administrative bungling. “One of these guys actually called me up late one night and threatened me, telling me to stop raising uncomfortable questions,” he adds. In one instance, an LIU personnel was caught harassing S.P. Sharma, a retired bsnl employee and RTI activist, staying miles away from the AMU campus.

Among students the unit is commonly referred to as the “KGB of AMU”. “This is not only illegal but also has become a major reason for a fear psychosis among the students about what it could do to their careers,” says Mohammed Adil Hossain, a postgraduate student of mass communications at the university. But AMU V-C Abdul Azis denies any harassment by the LIU and even defends its presence. “It helps maintain campus peace and security. There’s nothing secretive about the LIU and it is not policing,” he says. “We rely on their information to find out about criminals coming into the campus. AMU has 16 gates and at one time halls were under the control of local goons who found a safe haven here.” That said, now that the LIU’s existence is public, the AMU administration will have to try hard to convince people of the need to have spooks among its students and teachers.