Mohammad Ali Jauhar University (Amendment) Bill, which had been pending for seven years, has been finally cleared by the outgoing Uttar Pradesh Governor Aziz Qureshi granting minority status to the varsity.
The varsity is the dream project of senior Samajwadi Party minister Azam Khan, who often criticised Raj Bhawan for delaying clearance of the bill which was passed in the Legislative Assembly as well as Legislative Council in 2007.
Qureshi gave his approval to the bill on July 11 after taking views of legal experts including the Advocate General, Raj Bhawan sources here said today.
"It was examined and the opinion of Advocate General was also taken. All its merits and demerits were discussed and after finding that everything was in order it has been given approval by the Governor," sources said.
The National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions had granted its approval to the university in May last year and now the governor has also given his nod to the bill, sources said.
Two governors, T V Rajeshwar and B L Joshi, who quit the office last month, had withheld their approval to the bill.
The Mohammad Ali Jauhar University Act, 2005 to establish the university in Rampur, Khan's hometown, had come into force on September 5, 2006 during the previous regime of Mulayam Singh Yadav government.
The amendment bill was brought in 2007.
