THE second unit conference of SFI AMU unit was successfully held on May 8, on the theme of attack on educational institutes and on right to dissent.  Earlier, the permission for the conference was explicitly denied by the proctorial office. The conference started with flag hoisting and paying tributes to the martyrs. Prof. Irfan Habib in his inaugural address asked the students of Aligarh Muslim University, to fight against all type of communal forces, not only RSS-BJP led Hindu communal forces, but Muslim and Sikh communal forces also. He narrated the brief history of the student movement in Aligarh after independence and during partition and the role of Left-wing student organisation in his student life. In this context, Irfan habib also highlighted the formation of the ABVP and how it worked and is still working to destroy the unity of the student movement. He told the students to come forward against violence on dalits and against caste based identity politics. The Modi government is trying to bring divisions among the people.  They are trying to split our country in the name of ‘gau raksha’ or cow protection, or Bharat mata, or sometimes by tagging people as anti-national. On one hand, the BJP is misleading the people through these false and decisive slogans and on the other hand they are implementing anti-farmer, anti-worker policies like, Land Acquisition Bill, for the interest of the corporates. In the name of labour law reform, they cleared the road for exploitation of working people. Criticising the foreign policy of the Modi government, Irfan Habib said that in the past, India got respect from the people across the world for its non-alignment policy. We stood with other countries in their freedom movement. India played an important role in support of Palestine.  India is now drifting towards America. It is trying to become a junior partner of the US, in its drive to contain South China Sea.  Irfan Habib said though nationalism is the face of the Modi government, their policies are actually making India a subordinate of America. Irfan Habib appealed to the students at the conference that students should highlight these issues in front of the people. Joint front of farmers and workers will change our country.

Prof. Shireen Moosvi (president, Indian History Congress) and Namrita Singh (president, Janwadi Lekhak Sangh) were present at the open session and they greeted the conference. Aligarh Division Insurance Employees Association and CITU, Aligarh also sent their greetings to the convention.

SFI central secretariat member Sunand Singh highlighted how the Modi government has unleashed attacks on education and students across the country. Delegates discussed on draft political and organisational report. A committee was constituted in the conference with 15 members including  two girl students. Bhavya Sudhir and Javed Ikbal were elected as president and secretary respectively.