CAMPUS IN A TERROR MESS

A white-collar jihad hub nestled in the Al-Falah University, a prominent private institution in Haryana's Faridabad district, shook up the nation after a member of its faculty, Dr Umar Un Nabi, became a suicide bomber, detonating his car near Red Fort the other day.

- IFRAH MUFTI

Days before the blast, other faculty members of the university were picked up on terror-related charges. With Al-Falah founder Jawad Ahmad Siddiqui in judicial custody, Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids uncovered crores in alleged laundered funds from fake accreditations, amid charges of faking patient records for fund generation. At least 10 of its staffers are missing, and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) is probing the jihad hub's Pakistan-backed networks.

Situated in the Muslim-majority Dhauj village, the university long positioned itself as a minority-focused centre of higher learning. However, recent events have severely shaken its reputation and prompted investigators to explore whether educated individuals, allegedly working under Pakistan-backed handlers, used the institution as a safe haven for operations.

From engineering college to university

Founded in 1997 as an engineering college, Al-Falah steadily expanded, gaining university status in 2014 under the Haryana Private Universities Act. Its first MBBS batch started in 2019. For many minority students from Haryana and neighbouring states, it served as an alternative to established institutions like Aligarh Muslim University, Jamia Millia Islamia, and Jamia Hamdard. The university grew into a multidisciplinary network, including the Al-Falah School of Engineering and Technology, Brown Hill College of Engineering and Technology, Al-Falah School of Education and Training, and Al-Falah Medical College. Its 650-bed hospital, providing free treatment, boosted its social profile and attracted thousands of students.

Institutional structure