Student protests erupted at the Aligarh Muslim University today after the Registrar claimed that he had been "forced to resign under duress".
Protesting students gathered outside the office of the Vice-Chancellor, Lt Gen (Rtd) Zameer Uddin Shah this afternoon and even tried to block his car by lying down in front of the vehicle.
Some senior university officials, accompanying the V-C, were also allegedly manhandled during the protest.
This morning, university spokesman had announced that the Registrar, Group Captain (Rtd) Shahrukh Shamshad had submitted his resignation citing health grounds.
University spokesperson Rahat Abrar said the Registrar's resignation had been accepted and Asfar Ali Khan, a faculty member at Z H College of Engineering and Technology, had been handed over charge and would function as the officiating Registrar.
But in a turn of events in the afternoon, Shamshad submitted another letter to the V-C stating that he was withdrawing his resignation since he had earlier been forced to submit it under duress.
He urged the V-C to allow him to continue work as Registrar and accept his letter of withdrawal of the resignation.
When asked to comment on Shamshad's claim, a university spokesman said the V-C had made it clear that the Registrar's resignation had not been made under duress but was willingly written in his own handwriting.
"The V-C is not going to allow Shamshad to retract his resignation," the spokesman said.
The students have threatened to intensify the agitation if the truth behind Registrar's resignation is not revealed, a student leader and a spokesperson of the protesters, Burhan Khan told the media.
"We want to know the circumstances under which the Registrar, who is an upright official, has been forced to submit his resignation," he added.
