Jamia students back professor; say exam question 'well within syllabus'; seek apology from JMI

Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) students across multiple departments have come out in support of professor Virendra Balaji Shahare, who was suspended by the university administration over a question in the BA (Hons) Social Work semester exam on “atrocities against Muslim minorities”. The students said that the question was “clearly and unambiguously” within the prescribed syllabus of the course.

“We firmly state that Prof. Shahare has committed no wrongdoing,” students of his department said.

Attaching a copy of the syllabus with the open statement, the students of the Social Work department at JMI said: “The question cited as the basis of complaints was clearly and unambiguously within the prescribed syllabus, which explicitly mandates critical engagement with social realities, including marginalisation, discrimination, violence, and structural injustices.”

Stating that the curriculum of social work is designed to train students to analyse social problems empirically and critically, JMI students said penalising a professor for facilitating critical inquiry “undermines the very foundation of social science education”.

They also highlighted that the university offers courses in Dalit and Minority Studies, Social Inclusion, Human Rights and Social Justice, and that all these programmes are premised on critical inquiry, structural analysis, and examination of social inequality, and marginalisation.

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Students allege misuse of power

The university in its order invoked Statute 37(1) of Jamia Millia Islaima, which allows the administration to place a teacher under suspension only in exceptional circumstances.

Calling it a misuse of power, students said “setting an examination question, approved through institutional mechanisms and aligned with the syllabus, does not constitute misconduct, negligence, or carelessness”.

Students of the Social Work department said that the question papers for semester exams at Jamia do not pass unilaterally; they are moderated, scrutinised, approved by relevant committees, and finally cleared by the Controller of Examinations.

"Yet, only Shahare has been singled out."

FIR against professor for setting paper 'alarming'

No questions have been raised against the moderation committees and the CoE, who bears statutory responsibility for the final approval of the exam papers; students said this selective action raises concerns about procedural fairness and institutional bias.

“It is impossible to ignore the fact that Prof. Shahare is a Dalit academic, and that making an example of him appears institutionally easier than questioning higher authorities or collective bodies,” they said.

Terming the suspension a “disturbing pattern”, the students said the mention of filing a police FIR against the faculty member for setting a syllabus-compliant academic question is deeply alarming.

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Students demand public apology, assurance

“This is not only disproportionate but also sets a dangerous precedent of criminalising pedagogy. Academic disagreements or public discomfort cannot and must not be converted into criminal liability,” they said, demanding immediate revocation of the suspension.

They also demanded a public apology by the university for “wrongly accusing, defaming, and subjecting him to reputational harm”, and assurance that no faculty, especially from marginalized communities will be scapegoated for institutional decisions.

Other departments and students also issued public statements in support of Shahare, and reiterated “dialogue, not punitive action, must remain the guiding principle of university governance”.