Authorities in Uttar Pradesh have ordered the demolition of 38 buildings at the Mohammad Ali Jauhar University in Rampur, linked to Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan. Officials said 38 of the campus’s 40 structures were built without obtaining proper building approvals.
The Rampur development authority initiated the action under the Uttar Pradesh Urban Planning and Development Act, 1973, stating that the constructions were unauthorised. The move is expected to lead to demolition of the identified buildings.
The Samajwadi Party criticised the action, calling it politically motivated and a planned act of vendetta. Rampur District Collector Ajay Kumar Dwivedi said the process began after a zonal junior engineer reported unauthorised construction activity on the campus.
According to the district administration, notices were issued and the university submitted its response, with an opportunity provided to appear in person and explain its position. The university argued that approvals were not required and that the buildings were constructed long ago, making them ineligible to be declared illegal under current rules.
Rejecting these arguments, the development authority said approval from the competent authority is mandatory at the time of construction, regardless of whether the area later came under its jurisdiction. The university, founded in 2006, has in recent years faced legal disputes related to alleged land encroachment and lease violations, and the state government has said it recovered large portions of the campus after confirming encroachments. Earlier this year, Azam Khan and his family formally stepped down from the university’s governing body.
