The Hindu : Minority B.Ed colleges allege violation of poll code

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Mar 23, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Minority B.Ed colleges allege violation of poll code

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, MARCH 22. The New Minority B. Ed Colleges Association of Andhra Pradesh has accused the State Minorities Welfare Department of violating the Election Code of Conduct and at the same time taking the cover of the code to deny minority status to 23 minority B.Ed colleges.

Addressing a press conference here on Monday, Association president Mirza Ali Baig said that the department had accorded provisional minority status vide GOs to 18 Muslim Minority colleges on February 23 this year and to another five colleges on February 26.

The list of the 23 colleges was sent to the State Council for Higher Education with a request not to include their names in the general counselling, as they would admit students belonging to the Muslim community on their own as per merit.

However, on March 3, the department issued another G.O. asking for members of the governing bodies of the educational institutions to provide SSC or other equivalent records to prove their religious status. Several members, according to Mr. Baig, were not able to produce the certificates due to various reasons and meanwhile, the department said that because the election code of conduct was in force, the minority status could not be accorded.

The association pointed out that the minority status had been accorded to the 23 colleges on February 23 and 26, while the election code had come into force on February 29. "If there is anything that violates the code of conduct, it is the G.O.Ms.No.4 issued on March 3.

They are making the minority college managements scapegoats by keeping the minority status in abeyance and thereby denying nearly 3,000 minority students their right to admission in these colleges," Mr. Baig alleged, and questioned the department's orders to the State Council for Higher Education to conduct the second phase of counselling, saying that the counselling should also be deferred till the elections were over.

"We are prepared to give an undertaking that no non-minority student will be given admission in our colleges and that we will surrender the rest of the seats.

But the academic future of nearly 3,000 minority students should be not be jeopardised," the association members said.

The association also requested Chief Minister, N.Chandrababu Naidu, to intervene and sort out the issue amicably.

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Andhra Pradesh