Proposal as the First State-owned Urdu University In 2004, it was proposed that a
state-owned Urdu university be set up in
Rampur, Uttar Pradesh. It was named after
Mohammad Ali Jouhar, an
Indian Muslim activist, who was one of the leading figures of the
Khilafat Movement. The main originator of the idea of an Urdu university was
Azam Khan. It would have been the first state-owned
Urdu university in the region of
Uttar Pradesh. At the time, the proposal to make Azam Khan the lifelong chancellor of the university was not approved by the then-governor, T.V. Rajeshwar. The central government, then controlled by the
Indian National Congress, also opposed the bill for an Urdu university. It stated that it would approve the bill if Azam Khan, then MLA of the
Samajwadi Party, would cease seeking to be the lifelong chancellor of the University. Since Azam Khan insisted on being appointed lifelong chancellor, the proposal was eventually shelved indefinitely.
Samajwadi Party loses power The university faced political challenges for the next five years. In 2006, amidst opposition from political parties, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh,
Mulayam Singh Yadav, laid the foundation stone of the University. In 2007, the Samajwadi Party lost the
2007 Vidhan Sabha election, and the
Bahujan Samaj Party won a majority in the house. This further worsened conditions for
Azam Khan, who was part of the
Samajwadi Party and was the main proponent of the university. Finally, in 2009,
Azam Khan decided to set up an engineering college on the university premises instead.
Azam Khan's idea of a state-owned Urdu university was beginning to pave the way for a full-fledged, privately owned university. For the next three years, the engineering college by the name
Jauhar College of Engineering and Technology operated on university premises affiliated with the
Mahamaya Technical University.
Samajwadi Party comes to power A major uplift to the university was seen in 2012 when the Samajwadi Party came to power. The issue was promoted, and in July, Uttar Pradesh
Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav finally authorized the university to start admissions as a full-fledged private university.
Inauguration of the university After eight years of struggle, the university was finally inaugurated on September 18th, 2012, by
Mulayam Singh Yadav, the founder of the
Samajwadi Party. The inauguration was attended by many members of the
Samajwadi Party, as well as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh Yadav. Mulayam Singh Yadav said that Azam Khan had rendered "an unmatched service for the upliftment of the community and society." Calling it a historical moment, he said that the roles of Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar and his brother Shaukat Ali were very significant in the freedom struggle. Yadav said that the way to development was education. He also called for more educational institutions for minorities. He requested the Chief Minister to consider opening a medical college at the university. He further said that after the
Aligarh Muslim University, Rampur will now be remembered as the Mohammad Ali Jauhar University.
Termination of the University's Land Lease In 2023, the Uttar Pradesh government cancelled the university's land lease, citing a violation of the lease's conditions. The government claimed that the lease was granted for the establishment of a research institute, but a university had been established on the land instead. The Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Trust sued, requesting the Allahabad High Court to reverse the termination of the lease. In March of 2024, the High Court denied the request, allowing for the termination of the lease. The trust's attorney appealed the decision to the Supreme Court of India, which sided with the Allahabad High Court in October of the same year, refusing to consider the appeal. ==Infrastructure==