As Aligarh civic body tries to take over prime plot, AMU says land belongs to them

A prime plot of land in Aligarh is the center of a dispute between the Aligarh Municipal Corporation and the Aligarh Muslim University. The land, valued at Rs 500 crore, is 3.863 hectares in size. The municipal corporation claims they have legal ownership of the land, stating it was registered as barren land since 1992. However, the university maintains it owned the land from before independence until 1992, when it was incorrectly recorded as barren land in the revenue records.

The university has produced documents supporting its claim since pre-independence. The municipal corporation has already taken possession of the land, deploying machinery to level it and erecting fences. The university's Vice-Chancellor, Naima Khatoon, has protested against this move and threatened to take the matter to the Supreme Court.

The municipal corporation argues they are acting in the public interest, planning to use the land for various civic projects such as a police station, schools, and sports complexes. The university disputes this, stating that the land is their horse riding field and that all relevant documents, records, and legal evidence support their ownership.