Jamia Millia Islamia suspends classes after students attempt to show BBC documentary

Jamia Millia Islamia announced on Thursday that classes will be cancelled for Friday due to student and faculty requests. University departments, centres, and schools will continue to function as usual, according to a message from university management.

The university’s departments, centres, and schools will all be open and operating as normal, even if classes have been cancelled, according to an university memo.

According to Vice Chancellor Najma Akhtar, the institution issued the statement after preventing certain students from showing “India: The Modi Question,” a BBC documentary about Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“It is to clarify that class suspension has nothing to do with yesterday’s protest. The Vice Chancellor publicly announced it today after the Republic Day function on the demand of teachers who were busy for the last three days organising Republic Day programmes in their respective Faculty/Departments/Centres,” the statement reads.

On January 24, a few hours before the controversial BBC programme was set to be screened, students gathered to protest the arrest and incarceration of four Students’ Federation of India (SFI) activists.

Despite rumours to the contrary, an official statement has denied any link between the controversy surrounding the BBC documentary and the decision to cancel classes.

Ahead of time, Akhtar raised the Indian flag on the grounds of the Dr. M. A. Ansari Auditorium to commemorate India’s 74th Republic Day. An A rating from the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), and the highest ranking for the university’s remarkable achievement in offering high-quality education, teaching, and research were all highlighted by Akhtar throughout her address.