Deoband VC Vastanvi digs in heels, refuses to quit
03:50PM Thu 27 Jan, 2011
NEW DELHI: Darul Uloom Deoband vice-chancellor Ghulam Mohammed Vastanvi on Thursday refused to resign from his post, throwing down the gauntlet to those who have demanded his removal for allegedly praising Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi.
Vastanvi said the issue of his continuation should be decided at the meeting of the Majlis-e-Shoora, the collegium that chose him to head the renowned Islamic seminary near Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh. The meeting of the Majlis-e-Shoora is scheduled for February 23. Vastanvi had earlier appeared to have given in to pressure from those seeking his ouster for allegedly giving Modi a clean chit. But his defiant stand on Thursday appears to have been prompted by the continued backing from those who elected him, and should lead to a confrontation with his rivals.
Claiming that there was no erosion in his support base, Vastanvi told TOI, "I have spoken to several Shoora members. All of them have told me that nothing has happened that warrants my resignation."
I had thought of resigning keeping the institution's interests in mind, but things have calmed down there. The Shoora will meet, but I will not tender my resignation."
Agencies quoted Vastanvi as saying that he had not given a clean chit to Modi and his original statement (to TOI) had been twisted by the Urdu media. "The people of Gujarat agree on the fact that development is happening in the state, and everyone, whether a Hindu or a Muslim, is there," the agency quoted him as saying.
In his remarks to TOI, the Deoband VC never gave a clean chit to Modi although he appreciated the growth in the state under the chief minister accused of engineering the 2002 riots.
Vastanvi's decision to dig in his heels has, however, come as a surprise. He left Deoband on Wednesday morning making it clear to people there that he was off for good even if his resignation would need to be formally accepted by the Shoora before it became official. He spent the night in Delhi amid speculation that he had met Maulana Badruddin Ajmal, the All India United Democratic Forum MP from Assam and a member of the Shoora, in the evening. Ajmal, however, denied the meeting.
But sources said Vastanvi's decision to stay on was the fallout of talks between the two Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind factions led by Rajya Sabha MP Mahmood Madani and his uncle Arshad Madani failing. Between them, the two Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind factions control about 15 of the 18 Shoora votes.
As part of the understanding, Jamiat president Qari Usman, who is aligned with Mahmood Madani, was expected to quit his post for Arshad Madani and take over as VC of Deoband. But Qari Usman on Wednesday issued a statement saying he would not step down and rumours about his being the next mohtamim (VC) of Deoband were just that. A Jamiat insider said, "The idea was that Usman would take over Deoband and Jamiat would be led by Arshad Madani. That did not work out, instead what happened was Badruddin Ajmal met Mahmood Madani in the evening. Vastanvi's U-turn explains it all."
Arshad Madani has been camping in Deoband for the last few days. None of the three-Arshad Madani, Mahmood Madani and Badruddin Ajmal-who are said to be the key factors in deciding Vastanvi's fate, commented on the Deoband situation despite repeated attempts to get their side of the story.
Under the changed circumstances, the February 23 meeting of the Shoora no longer remains technically necessary, but Deoband insiders feel this may be the VC's ace in establishing his authority over the institution when it is clear that there are powerful forces working against his continuation in the post. The date of the meeting has seen two postponements in as many days. "The time factor is of essence here because it is alignments outside Deoband that will decide which way the 18-member governing council sways. Had the 'Deoband for Jamiat' solution worked, then Vastanvi would not have stood a chance. But even now, it is a delicate balance of power and things may yet change in the next 25 days," said a cleric.
Source: TOI