25 March, 2006

My dear Vice-Chancellor,

I would like to place before you some ideas to make the meetings of the AMU Court more purposeful.

Frequency:  The AMU Court should meet, it is generally agreed, at least twice a year.  The year should be the academic year.  It should be possible to fix the dates on a long-term basis and adhere to them.  We already have one land mark: Sir Syed Day in October.  The other can be sometime in April of the following calender year.

Minutes:  The minutes should not record views expressed by individual members in detail but the broad lines of discussion and the consensus reached on the matter under discussion.  The dissent of an individual member may be recorded, if he so desires, but without expanding on his rationale.

Agenda:  To avoid deviation from serious and focussed discussion the Agenda should include General Discussion on the State of the University which should allow members not more than 5 minutes to focus on any particular aspect or problem.  But only  those members should be permitted who have sought permission in advance with the subject of their intervention.

To serve as a background, the University should circulate a Statement on the State of the University on important developments since the last meeting of the Court.

Annual Report:  The Annual Report should give an overview of the University and not read like a compilation of Annual Reports of all Departments/Centres.  The Report should have an opening chapter on Structural Changes in the University set-up during the year, in the membership of the University bodies like EC and AC, in the courses offered and approved capacity and actual intake, in the overall faculty-wise changes at the Professor, Reader and Lecturer level, in the enrollment of students and hostel capacity and utilization.  The Report should focus on academic output of the university, course-wise, university publications, research work recognized at least nationally, faculty participation in national and international academic events,  achievement in sports and culture and major extra-curricular activities.

Procedure:  No member should be permitted to intervene more than once on any subject under discussion.  The Chair should sum up the discussion and record the consensus/decision for the minutes.

Resolution:  No member should be permitted to move a resolution unless he has given prior notice and circulated a  draft.  In case a resolution is admitted, time for discussion should be set and the mover should be allowed to make a brief introduction as well as to respond to the discussion.

On important official matters, the Registrar should circulate a draft resolution alongwith the Agenda.

Old Boys:  The University should have an official Roll of Old Boys consisting of those who have obtained at least a Degree from the University.  All Old Boys shall be eligible to become members of the local Association or directly of the State Association in the absence of local association.

The Rules and Regulations of the AMU Old Boys Association should be approved by the Court and the Association should have State branches as well as branches in foreign countries of Alig concentration.  The Rules should provide for proportionate representation of Old Boys from all states as well as relevant foreign countries among office-bearers and among Old Boys’ representatives in the AMU Court.

Old Boys who actually become members and are members in good standing should be allowed to vote, to become office-bearers of the central body or contest election to the Court.

With kind regards,

Yours sincerely,

 (SYED SHAHABUDDIN)

Mr. Naseem Ahmad,

Vice-Chancellor,

Aligarh Muslim University,

Aligarh - 200 002 (UP).