Does This JNU Hostel Have Free Accommodation For Muslims And Prohibits Hindus? No, Viral Claim Is False!

A photo has gone viral across social media showing a building with the name J&K Hostel. The caption accompanying the viral photo claims that the building was constructed for JNU students from Jammu and Kashmir.

The claim has gone viral in the context of the recent violence that occurred on the JNU campus on Ram Navami. Members of ABVP and JNU clashed over the serving of meat in the Kavery hostel of JNU on the occasion of Ram Navami. Misinformation in relation to that incident circulated across social media as well.

Claim:

The photo carries a caption that claims that the building depicted is not a five-star hotel but is a hostel that was constructed by the Congress government in 2012 for JNU students from Jammu and Kashmir.

The post claims that the hostel has 400 rooms and that no Hindu students or students from other religions can stay at the hostel. Meanwhile, the post also claims that Muslim students would stay for free at the hostel allegedly at the expense of Indian taxpayers.

The text of the post reads, "This is not a five star hotel. This is hostel constructed by Congress government in 2012 for JNU students from J&K. It has 400 rooms. In this hostel no Hindus or other religion can stay. Islam students f on JK will stay free of cost and study here on the cost our whole Indian tax payers money. After completing the course, they will shout slogans against Indian nation. What a secular party is Congress?"

A Facebook user shared this post and wrote a caption which reads, "Atrocities of congress."

It is being widely shared on Facebook with similar claims.

Fact Check:

The Logical Indian Fact Check team verified the viral claim and found it to be false. The photo being circulated is actually of Jamia Millia Islamia's J&K hostel. Also, the claim is misleading.

We conducted a reverse image search on the viral image through which we came across the following post on Facebook. The Facebook page, Kashmir Today, shared photos of the hostel from various angles. The caption reads that the J&K hostel at Jamia Millia Islamia, Delhi was inaugurated.

We also found this post on Facebook which includes an image from another angle with the caption stating that the pictured building is J&K Hostel at Jamia Islamia.

We conducted keyword searches with the above information and came across this hostel manual for the year 2019-20 issued by Jamia Islamia. The manual carried this picture of the hostel along with details.

The hostel manual mentions the Eligibility Criteria for admission into the J&K Hostel. The manual states that accommodation in the University Hostel is available only to bonafide students of full time courses.

The two other conditions are as follows:

b) Applicants must have secured a minimum of 45% marks in aggregate in the last qualifying examination.

c) As seats are limited in the hostels, students whose parents/spouses reside and work in Delhi/NCR are not necessarily eligible for the hostel accommodation.

The manual clearly states that admission to the hostel is purely on the basis of merit. The admission criteria do not mention religion or free accommodation on the basis of religion. The only exception for waiver of rent in the hostel is in the case of physically challenged students and whose parent's annual income is not above Rs 1.50 lakhs per annum.

We also came across this report by The Citizen which talked about a protest by girl students residing at the hostel. The report mentions that the hostel with a capacity for 700 students was inaugurated in 2017.

A Hindu report also states that the hostel was first conceptualized in 2012. The hostel is funded by Ministry of Home Affairs through a signed Memorandum of Agreement between Jamia Islamia university and J&K government.

As per the reports, the first preference for selection is given to girl students from J&K, followed by other students who stay at a distance of at least 1,000 km away from Delhi.

Conclusion:

In our investigation, we found that the hostel is not from the JNU campus but is located in Jamia Milia Islamia, Delhi. The hostel was inaugurated in 2017 under the rule of the BJP government and is funded by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Jamia Islamia University and the J&K government.

There is no free accommodation for Muslim students or students from Jammu and Kashmir in the hostel and admission is entirely on a merit basis. The only exception is in the case of physically challenged students within a certain income category. The first preference for admission to the girls' hostel is for female students from Jammu and Kashmir. Hence, the viral claim is false.

If you have any news that you believe needs to be fact-checked, please email us at factcheck@thelogicalindian.com or WhatsApp at 6364000343.

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