New Delhi, Dec 30: Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his inability to preside over the annual convocation of Jamia Millia Islamia on January 19. Scientist Goverdhan Mehta will be the chief guest at the annual convocation. ”We have got a reply from the PMO that the Prime Minister will not be able to visit the university due to time constraints. So, we extended an invite to Goverdhan Mehta who has given his consent following which we decided a suitable date,” Jamia spokesperson Mukesh Ranjan said.
The Jamia Millia Islamia University had in November extended an invite to Narendra Modi, which triggered a controversy as a number of alumni demanded withdrawal of the invitation in view of the comments made by the PM against the varsity in 2008. However the varsity maintained that Modi’s inability to attend the event has nothing to do with the protests from the alumni. The protests by certain alumni came in the wake of the fact that Modi had attacked Jamia in 2008 after the Batla House encounter in September that year. (ALSO READ: Jamia Milia divided over Narendra Modi’s invitation at the convocation ceremony)
Addressing a gathering in Gujarat in 2008, Modi had said, “There is a university in Delhi called Jamia Millia Islamia. It has publicly announced that it will foot the legal fee of terrorists involved in act. Go drown yourself. This Jamia Millia is being run on government money and it is daring to spend money on lawyers to get terrorists out of jail. When will this vote bank politics end?” Modi’s comments had come following a statement by the then Jamia VC Mushirul Hasan that the university would offer legal aid to two of its students arrested for their suspected involvement in terror activities.