An Aligarh Muslim University"™s (AMU) professor is facing disciplinary action, including suspension, for posting derogatory remarks against vice-chancellor Lt Gen (retd) Zameer Uddin Shah on Facebook.
The university"™s executive council held a special meeting Tuesday afternoon to discuss the post by Dr Syed Ali Nadeem Rezavi, an associate professor of the history department.
The executive council, which held the meeting at the instance of the V-C, "authorised" Shah to initiate action, including suspension, against Rezavi.
"Prof Rezavi was using derogatory words against me for the past one year. He had launched a string of hate mails against me. Despite a warning, he did not mend his ways. Now, disciplinary action will be initiated against him," Shah told The Indian Express.
Shah chose not to participate in the meeting as the matter concerns him.
Rezavi, who is Deputy Coordinator in Centre for Advance Study in Department of History, admitted his remarks were in not in good taste."I know that my remarks were not in good taste and being a professor I should not have made them. But it was my Facebook wall and I have freedom of speech," he claimed.
Rezavi on his Facebook wall had termed a former V-C as lotiya chor (thief) and Shah as"beaql" (foolish person).
Shah said:"Freedom of speech does not mean a slanderous campaign against anyone. Rezavi was promoting such a campaign in the campus; it will not be allowed."
Rezavi said he made the remarks after he found out that the V-C had called the files related to Aligarh Historian Society of (historian) Prof Irfan Habib for scrutiny.
"I had then remarked that the V-C, Pro-VC and Registrar are no match for Prof Habib and Shah is a foolish person. I should not have written it but still why did the V-C spy on my Facebook wall," a defiant Rezavi said.
A statement by AMU Public Relations Officer said the executive council stated that Rezavi could also attract an FIR and action under the cyber law if he continued with his"slanderous" activities on social media.
The executive council, according to PRO"™s statement, has also decided that"a notification be sent to all teaching and non-teaching staff to refrain from using social sites for denigrating individuals or casting aspersion on anybody".