Four months after Red Fort blast row, Faridabad's Al Falah campus limps back to normalcy

Students say classes and exams are back on schedule though police presence continues. Faculty resignations, low patient footfall and fear linger.

Four months after a terror module operating from the campus of Al-Falah University in Faridabad’s Dhauj was linked to the November 10 Red Fort suicide bombing that killed 12 people, life inside the campus has limped back to normalcy with classes running smoothly, students and faculty said.

Campus saw faculty resignations, empty hostels and heavy policing after arrests of doctors linked to the bombing. Admissions and classes have now resumed. (PTI)

Students said they faced a tough time for almost a month after the terror module was uncovered, but the situation normalised soon after. However, during a visit by HT at the campus, they appeared apprehensive in opening up to strangers, particularly in the presence of media or police personnel around the campus – which had virtually turned into a fortress with round-the-clock police presence and continuous raids after the bombing.

The university came under scrutiny after one Dr Muzammil Shakeel Ganaie, who worked as a doctor at the medical college and hospital of the university, was arrested from its premises in October last year. This led to the recovery of 2900 kg of ammonium nitrate, timers, chemicals, live cartridges and an assault rifle from two locations in Faridabad on November 9.

A day later, a suicide bombing took place at Red Fort and the man behind of the Hyundai i20 that exploded was Dr Umar un-Nabi, an assistant professor there for the past one year. Umar, Ganaie, and, Dr Shaheen Sayeed — another doctor associated with the institution who was arrested later, were part of the terror module operating from the university.

Investigators revealed that a building on campus served as a meeting point for the accused, while a room belonging to one of the doctors was allegedly used to mix chemicals and prepare explosives using ammonium nitrate. Cars used in the conspiracy were reportedly left parked on campus for weeks.

For students, the events of November remain a part of their academic lives they would rather forget.

A second-year MBBS student, speaking on condition of anonymity, recalled the difficult period in November when he first arrived on campus. “Classes were affected since faculties kept resigning one after another as the police crackdown intensified soon after the blast,” he said. His friend, who also asked to remain anonymous, added that student attendance had dropped sharply. “Even though some had taken admission, they didn’t come to the college for several weeks. However, now the classes are running in full strength,” he said, adding that semester exams are expected by April-end or May.

A senior university official, also requesting not to be identified, acknowledged that the institution struggled in the aftermath of the blast and the scrutiny that followed. “However, now the situation is back on track. Next month, the final exams of MBBS final year students are going to be held. It is taking place as per the academic schedule,” he said.

Another senior faculty member said: “Around the time when the university was in headlines every day, most students left for their homes, hostels became empty, faculties in large numbers resigned. The campus was virtually deserted for a month and a half. The environment started warming up only when admission of fresh batches took place for the medical course.”

Separately, the university’s founder and chairman, Jawad Ahmed Siddiqui, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on November 18, 2025, under the Prevention of Money Laundering (PMLA) Act. The ED’s probe revealed that the university had generated “proceeds of crime” of at least ₹ ₹415.1 crore. He was granted provisional bail by a trial court on March 7, citing his wife’s medical condition.

Dr Bhupinder Kaur Anand, principal of Al-Falah School of Medical Science and Research Centre, said the institution was almost back to normalcy. “However, it may take some more time to reach the point where the entire university was before November 2025. In terms of students’ admission and faculty strength, the time required may be more… Our academics are running smoothly which had remained affected badly for almost two months. Exams are being planned to be held as per schedule,” she said.

Anand said faculty recruitment is ongoing, with candidates appearing for interviews almost daily. “A large number of medical college faculties had resigned after the developments last year. We are fulfilling all those posts. Several appointments have been made. However, there are still some more vacancies against which hiring is to be done,” she added.

One hospital doctor, also a faculty member, noted that patient footfall had dropped dramatically. “Earlier, the footfall was around 1,500 patients per day in the out-patient department. However, it didn’t even touch 100 patients per day during that crackdown time. It is yet to be restored,” he said.

Anand confirmed that daily footfall has now reached around 800. “It’s almost half of what it was before November, but the pace is picking up. In the time to come, I think the footfall will pick up further.”

The university offers several programmes besides its MBBS course, including B.Ed, M.Ed, PhD, Bachelor of Medical Laboratory Technology (BMLT) and Diploma of Medical Laboratory Technology (DMLT). At present, around 1,200 to 1,300 students are enrolled, with more than half pursuing medical studies.

Iklakh Khan, owner of Noor Pharmacy located at the university entrance, said his sales took a severe hit after the incident. “Daily sales had dropped virtually to zero with patients vanishing. I had to pay a month’s rent from my pocket. However, now things are normal but the sales graph is yet to touch the daily figure of upto 60 to 80 buyers which existed before November 2025,” he said, adding maximum 15 to 20 buyers reach the shop daily at present to purchase medicines.