Vastanvi loses Deoband job

Darul Uloom Deoband’s controversial Vice-Chancellor Maulana Ghulam Mohammed Vastanvi was on Sunday removed from the coveted post for praising Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s developmental policies. The decision to terminate Vastanvi’s services was taken by the Majjis-e-Shoora, Darul Uloom’s governing council, at a meeting that concluded at Deoband on Sunday noon. “Maulana Vastanvi has been removed from the post of Vice-Chancellor by Majlis-e-Shoora (management body of India’s leading Islamic seminary) with immediate effect,” said Maulana Abdul Qasim Nomani, the new V-C. It is interesting to note that the decision came even after the three-member inquiry committee, appointed by Majlis-e-Shoora to go into the charges against Maulana Ghulam Mohammed Vastanvi, held him “not guilty”. Reacting to the development, Vastanvi termed as “arbitrary” the decision of the Darul Uloom governing council to remove him as the Vice-Chancellor. Vastanvi asked how he could be removed as the decision of a three-member committee that had studied the issue had gone in his favour. According to agencies, Vastanvi said: “Let me make it loud and clear that I had never promised anybody that I would step down; I was always very very explicit that I would abide by the decision of the three-member committee and the Shoora; what surprises me is that despite the committee granting me a clean-chit, the Shoora has chosen to arbitrarily do away with my services,". Meanwhile, the Deoband governing council has decided to appoint a three-member inquiry committee to go into the charges against Vastanvi. After the Deoband decision, a strong pro-Vastanvi lobby stood up for him. He too emphasised that he never gave Modi any clean-chit for the latter’s role in the Gujarat riots. The report submitted by the three-member governing council on Sunday morning went in favour of Vastanvi. “While two members of the committee opined in favour of Vastanvi’s continuance as Vice-Chancellor, one of the members gave a dissenting note against Vastanvi,” a Darul Uloom official said. However, the 14-member Majlise-Shoora remained divided on the issue. After a heated debate, five Shoora members voted in favour of Vastanvi while the majority of nine preferred his ouster. The MBA degree holder Vastanvi was elected as Darul Uloom Deoband V-C on January 10 this year, following the death of his predecessor Maulana Marghoobur Rahman. Soon, he attracted criticism for reportedly saying that Muslims in Gujarat should look beyond the riots of 2002 and there was growth and employment opportunities in Gujarat.