'Atrocities against Muslims' question: Jamia professor suspended over controversial test paper

Jamia Millia Islamia is a central university established under an Act of Parliament in 1988.

• Jamia Millia Islamia suspended a professor over a controversial exam question
• The question allegedly referenced atrocities against Muslims in India
• A police FIR will be filed and a probe has been initiated by the university

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A professor of the Jamia Millia Islamia University in New Delhi has reportedly been suspended for a controversial question in a paper for BA (Hons) social work semester-1.

The action was taken after a question in an undergraduate semester examination allegedly referred to “atrocities against Muslims in India". It was a 15-mark question in the BA (Hons) Social Work first-semester examination in a paper titled 'Social Problems in India'.

This triggered a massive row, leading to several complaints by students.

Virendra Balaji Shahare is a professor at Jamia Millia's Department of Social Work.

His CV on the JMI website shows that he has over 22 years of teaching and research, with Rural and Urban Community Development, Dalit and Tribal Studies, Social Exclusion and Inclusion and Education and Social Development as his core interests. He is currently serving as Professor at the Department of Social Work, UGC Centre of Advanced Study in Jamia Millia Islamia.

He holds a PhD and MPhil from the Centre for the Study of Social Systems, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and an M.A (Social Work) Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. He has previously taught at Jamia Millia Islamia, Delhi University, and Nagpur University.

In the notice as quoted by India Today, on December 23, 2025, and signed by CA Shaikh Safiullah, the officiating registrar, the university says that it has suspended professor Virendra Balaji Shahare, the paper setter, with "immediate effect" and a "police FIR will be filed as per rules".

"Jamia Millia Islamia, has taken a serious view on the negligence and carelessness on the part of Prof Virendra Balaji Shahare, Department of Social Work," the notice read. It also said that a probe would be initiated.

According to the notice, during the suspension period, the headquarters of Shahare, will be New Delhi, and he shall not leave the headquarters without prior permission of the Competent Authority.

The university said it remains committed to upholding academic standards and ensuring accountability in examination-related processes.

Jamia Millia Islamia is a central university established under an Act of Parliament in 1988.