Meerut, July 17 -- A controversy escalated on Thursday a day after the Rampur Development Authority (RDA) ordered demolition proceedings against 38 buildings at Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar University-the dream project of former Uttar Pradesh minister and jailed senior Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan-as political voices denounced the move while the fate of nearly 3,000 students of the university hung in the balance as the institution confronted what is arguably the gravest crisis in its history.

Faced with demolition notices covering the overwhelming majority of its campus, fresh legal action over alleged fire safety violations, and the escalating political confrontation, the university now finds itself fighting for its very existence. ...