Haryana govt-run Al-Falah University fills all MBBS seats, a year after Red Fort blast row

FARIDABAD: A year after the Red Fort blast, the Al-Falah University, which came under intense scrutiny during the anti-terror probe, is functioning under the administrative control of the Haryana government with strict security arrangements on the campus. All 200 MBBS seats at the university have been completely filled during the recent admission cycle, said an official.

Following the suicide bomb blast in November 2025 that claimed 15 lives, investigative agencies examined the alleged involvement of certain doctors and staff members working at the university, putting a question mark over its fate. The university's founder-chairman Jawad Ahmed Siddiqui was arrested in connection with money laundering cases.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) and the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) also flagged "major irregularities" during their review of the institution's functioning. Following an investigation report that revealed numerous shortcomings and statutory violations, the state government took over the management of the university in March 2026.

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Police post on campus

A police post has now been set up on the college campus. The family of a cleric, who was associated with the mosque adjacent to the medical college and was arrested in the anti-terror probe has vacated their home. Police personnel remain stationed at the medical college at all times, and activities within the campus are being monitored. A verification process has also been initiated for everyone on campus, ranging from staff members to students, the official said.

However, academic activities have now fully returned to normal under government supervision, he said. IAS officer Amit Kumar Agarwal was appointed as the administrator of the university on March 21, 2026. Ajay Ranga, the Registrar of J.C. Bose University of Science and Technology (Faridabad), was given additional charge as the Vice-Chancellor (VC) of Al-Falah University .

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Al-Falah University fills all MBBS seats

Through the centralised counselling process conducted by the Pandit Bhagwat Dayal Sharma University of Health Sciences in Rohtak, Haryana, all 200 MBBS seats were allocated in a transparent manner. Around 80 per cent of faculty positions were filled transparently via newspaper advertisements, and a uniform, improved salary structure was implemented for all, officials said. Doctors who previously drew salaries by merely keeping their names on the rolls and without actually teaching were removed and a strict biometric attendance system was introduced, they said.

The university administration said that while 196 seats were filled during last year's admissions, all 200 seats have been filled this time. It emphasised that while investigative agencies are carrying out their work, the university administration remains focused on providing quality medical education. On November 9, 2025, the Jammu and Kashmir Police, in coordination with local police, arrested Dr Muzammil Shakeel Ganai, who was employed at Al-Falah Medical College.

Around 360 kilograms of explosive material, an assault rifle, cartridges, a pistol, magazines, and timers were recovered from his rented room in Dhauj village. On November 10, approximately 2,563 kilograms of ammonium nitrate were recovered during raids in Fatehpur Taga and Dhauj. In total, more than 2,900 kilograms of explosive material were seized across both operations. The next day, near the Red Fort in Delhi, Dr Umar un-Nabi blew himself up by detonating explosives in a car.