– Khan Tahir
Jamia Millia Islamia is a great educational institution of India, which was established not merely for the promotion of knowledge and education, but as part of a purposeful struggle and a national movement. This institution is a bright chapter in the educational, cultural, and political history of the subcontinent.
Upon hearing the name Jamia Millia Islamia, an educational institution emerges in the mind that was a symbol of the ideal blend of freedom, self-respect, knowledge, ethics, and Islam. But when one looks at today’s “Educational Mela” (fair), a question arises: Is this mela truly a manifestation of education, or a mockery of it?
Jamia Millia Islamia was founded on October 29, 1920, in Aligarh. At that time, the Muslims of the subcontinent were shackled in the chains of slavery, and the freedom movement was in full swing. Some students and teachers of Aligarh Muslim University felt that an educational institution under the patronage of the British was not suitable for the freedom and self-respect of the Muslim nation. Driven by this spirit, they decided to establish an independent institution where, along with education, the protection of national pride and Islamic values would also be possible.
It was with this objective that Jamia Millia Islamia was founded. “Jamia” means University, “Millia” means National, and “Islamia” signifies the adherence to Islamic values.
An Educational Mela is held on Jamia Millia Islamia’s Foundation Day. According to the Times of India, before 2025, this mela was held for two days in 2017. During research, some photos and videos of the 2008 Educational Mela were also found. But the 2025 Educational Mela, held on the 105th Foundation Day of Jamia, was different from all previous educational melas. The colourful pictures, music, fashion, lighting, and food stalls of this year’s Educational Mela transformed Jamia’s premises into what resembled a “vulgarity fair.”
But the question is: Is this the education for which Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar refused the scholarships granted by the British government? Is this the “cultural self-respect” that Hakim Ajmal Khan and Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed Ansari embedded in Jamia’s foundation?
If we ponder the first word of ‘Educational Mela,’ which is ‘Education,’ we realise that in Islam, the true meaning of ‘education’ is ‘Ilm’ (knowledge) – the awareness of reality, the distinction between right and wrong, and the recognition of Allah’s signs.
In Islam, the purpose of education is:
1) To gain the recognition of Allah.
2) The training of ethics and character.
3) Service to humanity.
4) The establishment of justice.
For Jamia’s founders, the concept of education was:
1) Education that protects both freedom and faith.
2) Free education for a free nation.
3) A self-reliant educational institution independent of the government.
4) Building faith and ethics.
5) Intellectual freedom.
6) National self-respect.
7) Service to humanity.
8) A blend of knowledge and action.
For them, education was not just a means to get a job, but a path to building the nation’s character and ethics.
For Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar, the purpose of education was freedom of thought and the strength of faith. He said:
“We want an education that does not enslave but liberates; that instils self-respect and faith in the nation.”
(Address at Jamia, Aligarh 1920)
Remember, approximately one hundred and five years ago, what did thinkers like Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar, Hakim Ajmal Khan, Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed Ansari, and Maulana Mahmud Hasan envision when they built Jamia Millia Islamia, and where has Jamia ended up today? Is this the continuation of the dreams of Jamia Millia Islamia’s founders, or a mockery of those dreams?
In the Islamic concept of education, the purpose of ‘Ilm’ is proximity to Allah and the reformation of humanity, not entertainment and display.
The Quran says: “يَرْفَعِ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مِنكُمْ وَالَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْعِلْمَ دَرَجَاتٍ” “Allah will raise those who have believed among you and those who were given knowledge, by degrees.” (Al-Mujadila: 11)
But here, instead of the degrees of knowledge, the angles of selfies seemed to be rising.
The word “Islamia” in Jamia Millia Islamia is not a formal addition; it is the core of its identity and purpose. Its founders saw education as a means for the survival of Islamic civilization. The aim of Islamic civilization is to make humans dignified, civilized, pure, just, knowledgeable, modest, and God-conscious. This civilization creates light within a person and in society.
Dr. Zakir Hussain, Jamia’s third Vice-Chancellor, later President of India, gave practical shape to Jamia’s educational philosophy and said: “Jamia is not merely an institution, but a moral movement.” But how much connection does today’s mela have with that movement?
The free mixing of men and women, fashion shows, and Western styles of entertainment at the mela gave rise to the question: Where has the significance of the word “Islamia” been lost?
If Islamic values recede into the background in Jamia’s mela, this mela ceases to be Jamia Millia Islamia’s mela and becomes the mela of Jamia Millia Ghair-Islamia (Non-Islamic).
At the mela, external display was prioritised over academic activities. Research projects, intellectual debates, and educational dialogues had a limited presence, while food corners, music shows, and competitive stalls garnered more attention.
This is the same danger from which Allama Iqbal had warned: “If education is without the spirit of religion, it is a deception, not training.”
Similarly, if we consider the second word of ‘Educational Mela,’ which is ‘Mela’ (fair), we find that among the Arabs, three major market-fairs were famous: 1) Sauq Ukaz, 2) Sauq Majannah, and 3) Sauq Dhi al-Majaz. In these fairs, trade, poetry, arbitration, and social decisions took place. The Prophet ﷺ preached in these fairs and eliminated their unethical and polytheistic aspects.
It is not that fairs are impermissible in Islam. If a fair is free from disobedience to Allah, devoid of obscenity, music, or nudity, free from wasteful spending, and is held for the purpose of education, trade, art, or religious propagation (Dawah), then such a fair is permissible (Halal).
Examples: 1) Genuine Educational Fairs, 2) Book Fairs, 3) Religious Gatherings, and 4) Scientific Exhibitions. All these are permissible if they adhere to Shariah limits.
In Islam, those fairs are impermissible which involve free mixing of men and women, singing, dancing, or obscene material, display non-Islamic symbols or shirk (polytheism), or contain innovations in the name of worship or prayer.
Allah says in the Quran: “وَالَّذِيۡنَ لَا يَشۡهَدُوۡنَ الزُّوۡرَۙ وَ اِذَا مَرُّوۡا بِاللَّغۡوِ مَرُّوۡا كِرَامًا” “(And the servants of the Most Merciful are) those who do not bear witness to falsehood, and when they pass near ill speech, they pass by with dignity.” (Surah Al-Furqan: 72)
Imam Ibn Taymiyyah writes: “A gathering based on the remembrance of Allah, knowledge, or goodness is permissible; and one based on vanity and sin is forbidden.”
Imam Al-Ghazali, in his book Ihya Ulum al-Din, writes: “If a gathering involves fitnah (temptation), immodesty, or negligence, then it is not a fair but satanic assembly.”
It seems that Jamia’s “Educational Mela” is gradually turning into a “Mela of Display.” Where knowledge has been relegated to the background and the foreground has taken precedence over knowledge. In Islam, knowledge is essential for women too, but along with it, modesty and dignity are also obligatory.
The environment seen in pictures and videos during the mela was far from Islamic dignity and academic seriousness. This was not just “culture,” but cultural deviation.
Jamia Millia Islamia: Three Foundational Ideological Pillars and Their Violation in the Educational Mela
Jamia Millia Islamia was not merely an educational institution, but in its original spirit, it was a revolutionary movement. This movement was founded on three major ideological principles:
- Self-Respect and Freedom from the Colonial Education System
Jamia’s first principle was self-respect – an education free from the British colonial system, an education that does not enslave the mind but creates free, dignified, and independent thinkers.
In that era, when the British were distorting the political, educational, and religious life of Muslims, Jamia’s founders had declared that we will acquire education with our own culture, our own thought, and our own freedom, not under the shadow of the British. But today, in the Educational Mela, this very principle was the most violated.
The movement that established a separate institution to escape British domination today has government representatives on its stage who are essentially the political heirs of that very colonial mindset.
Furthermore, the same government, which is making laws to usurp the Waqf lands of Muslims, has its representatives come and announce a donation of 18 crore rupees, while the reality is that 18 crore is merely a symbolic amount for a central university. During Manmohan Singh’s tenure, Jamia had already received 500 crores. Therefore, accepting a few crores from the hands of a government whose policy is to seize Muslim properties is completely against Jamia’s historical self-respect.
- National Service and the Spirit of Sacrifice for the Community
Jamia’s second ideological pillar was: The fervour for sacrifice for the country and the community, along with education.
Jamia Millia’s history is filled with sacrifices. Students sacrificed their homes, families, comforts, and even their futures to participate in the national freedom movement. Teachers gave up their salaries, women sold their jewellery, and Muslims, despite their weak economic condition, collected donations to run it. This sacrifice and patriotism were Jamia’s identity.
But in today’s Educational Mela, this spirit has been replaced by display, advertising, and endorsement of the government’s agenda.
Jamia was meant to produce youth connected to the nation’s pain. But now the mela showcases corporate culture, fundraising photoshoots, political propaganda, and ostentatious speeches. The same Jamia, which sacrificed everything for the nation, today seems to be pawning its intellectual freedom in exchange for a few government cheques.
- Upholding Islamic Values and the Blend of Religion and Worldly Life
Jamia’s third and most important principle was: Education based on Islamic values – meaning an educational system with a beautiful blend of religion and worldly life, where values like ethics, civilization, justice, modesty, service, piety, and faith-based zeal were given central importance.
Jamia’s initial curriculum had a clear Islamic spirit: Education was not secular but value-based. This was the very principle that made Jamia a movement, not just a university. But in today’s Educational Mela, there is no glimpse of Islamic ethics, no upholding of values, no dignity of civilization.
Speeches on stage, such guests, such programmes, and such activities have no connection with Jamia’s original spirit. Seeing the very principles upon which Jamia was built being buried in the glitz of celebrations, melas, and funding is painful.
The true purpose of Islamic values was: To prepare students with honesty, modesty, knowledge, character, truthfulness, sacrifice, and service to the nation. But in today’s mela, instead of character building, brand building is seen; instead of ethics, competition; instead of values, the dominance of marketing.
Jamia’s purpose was that education should strengthen the “nation’s selfhood” (Khudi), but the mela is losing this selfhood in entertainment.
The 2025 Educational Mela of Jamia Millia Islamia has once again clarified the reality that Jamia has strayed far from its original spirit and ideological foundation. This is the Jamia that was established not merely as an educational institution but as a movement; a movement whose foundation was laid on self-respect, national service, and the upholding of Islamic values. But in the atmosphere of this year’s mela, everything that was contradictory to the founders’ ideology was visible.
The mela certainly began in a very dignified manner. The programme started with the recitation of the Holy Qur’an, which for a moment gave the feeling that Jamia’s civilizational spirit is still alive and the echo of its founders’ prayers and hard work still exists in its atmosphere. But this state did not last long. As the mela progressed, the dominance of Western colours and a non-Islamic environment increased, and by the end, the event had almost completely separated from its original civilizational identity.
There were representatives of the same political circle whose ideologically affiliated people have continuously spread hateful narratives against Jamia. When Sudarshan TV’s editor Suresh Chavhanke called Jamia’s students “Jihadis,” it was this very ideology that wounded Jamia’s identity. It is regrettable that today a minister influenced by this same ideology is seated on Jamia’s stage.
Another sad aspect of this mela was the activities carried out in the name of “Sufi Night,” which were contrary to Jamia’s Islamic culture and moral tradition. Under the guise of Sufi Night, songs, chaotic music, dancing, and such actions were presented that in no way align with the Sufi tradition or Jamia’s ethical foundation. If Jamia’s founders were to see this state today, they might have even stopped the decision to establish Jamia. Jamia Millia Islamia was a centre of Islamic civilization, modesty, simplicity, and spiritual training; but today, its mela displays an environment that has become a symbol of moral decline and intellectual disorientation.
The pain does not end here. This year, Jamia also formally invited the Delhi Police and gave them the stage. This is the same Delhi Police that on December 15, 2019, entered Jamia’s campus and violently assaulted innocent students. This same police, on Diwali night 2024 at 3 AM, picked up students from the campus and took them away; not going too far back, just 40 days before Jamia Millia Islamia’s Foundation Day, students protesting against the Batla House encounter were dragged away, detained by the Delhi Police itself, leaving tales of fear, grief, and helplessness in the students’ minds. Inviting such an agency to the mela and having them conduct programmes was tantamount to rubbing salt in the wounds of Jamia’s students. This decision is in open opposition to Jamia’s historical self-respect and the principles of protecting its students.
Thus, the 2025 Educational Mela became a tale where the beginning was luminous, but the end was drowned in Western influences, political propaganda, and civilizational disorientation. This mela is a living example of Jamia’s ideological crisis, where self-respect has weakened, the spirit of sacrifice and national service has faded, and Islamic values have become confined only to the inaugural recitation.
Jamia must now decide which direction it wants to go in: Will it return to the path of its founders? Or will political interest, Western civilization, and ostentatious events become its new identity? This question is not just for Jamia, but a moment of reflection for the entire nation.
Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar had said: “We want an education that brings the nation closer to God, takes it away from slavery, and unites humanity.”
But in today’s mela, there is neither the remembrance of God, nor respect for ethics, nor the sanctity of knowledge.
If the mela becomes merely a “celebration,” it’s a betrayal of the spirit of Jamia’s founders. If the spirit of “Islamia” is not included in Jamia Millia Islamia’s mela, it is not just a mela but a tragedy. There is a need for Jamia to return to the footsteps of its founders and make education “worship” once again, not “entertainment.”
The criticism of Jamia’s mela is actually an expression of love for Jamia. We want this mela to revive Jamia’s original spirit: the blend of knowledge and action, the upholding of Islamic ethics, and spiritual responsibility along with intellectual freedom.
The mela should remain, but it should be a mela that awakens the spirit of education, not buries it. We pray to Allah Almighty to grant us the ability to understand and act upon the original purpose of Jamia Millia Islamia.
Ameen.
