Tazeen Fatma defends Azam Khan on luxury resort and university land row

Rajya Sabha MP from Uttar Pradesh Tazeen Fatma on Saturday defended her husband, Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Azam Khan on the row over the luxury resort 'Humsafar' and accused the administration of working on behalf of the ruling government.

"Where was the administration when the boundary wall of the 'Humsafar' resort was being built? Why did they not take any action back then, the resort was built almost 30 years back, even the bricks are that many years old," Fatma said at a press conference here.

The boundary wall of the 'Humsafar' resort, belonging to Fatma's son, Abdullah Azam Khan, was demolished by the district administration on Friday.

 

According to authorities, the resort was illegally constructed on government land.

Fatma clarified that there was no question of following the norms of the Rampur Development Authority (RDA) in the construction of the resort, as the body did not exist 30 years back and added that the rules which were in place at that time were followed.

"This resort is more than 30 years old, the RDA did not exist back then. However, whatever rules were in place back then were met in its construction," she said.

She further alleged that through a conspiracy her husband had been declared a "land-mafia" and citing the Jauhar University case she requested the buildings constructed on the alleged land taken from the farmers.

"Azam Khan has been falsely declared a land-mafia, in the case of Jauhar University too he is accused of grabbing the lands of farmers. There is hardly three or four bigha land there, who knows how can a road pass through that. If the people want they can take money for the land and even demolish the building construction on it," she added.

Last month, police carried out a raid at the premises of Mohammad Ali Jauhar University and recovered over 2,500 expensive books allegedly stolen from some other institutes. Several complaints have been lodged against the controversial Rampur lawmaker, who is the chancellor of the university, for alleged land grab to build the varsity.