On Thursday, the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education stated that it won’t conduct an investigation as directed by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) to identify non-Muslim students in the Madarsas. The Board said that doing so might create a divide between the Muslim and non-Muslim communities.
This is a month after NCPCR directed chief secretaries of all states and Union Territories to conduct a detailed inquiry into madarsas admitting non-Muslim children. The commission has also recommended mapping of all madarsas.
The letter written by the NCPCR to the chief secretaries read, “On perusal of various complaints received by the Commission from different sources, it is noted that children belonging to Non-Muslim community are attending Government funded/ Recognised Madarsas. Further, it is also learned by the Commission that some State/UT Governments are providing them with scholarships too. This is a clear-cut violation and contravention of Article 28(3) of the Constitution of India that prohibits educational institutions from obligating the children to take part in any religious instruction, without the consent of parent.”
The Commission had asked states and Union Territories to admit any or all such children in schools with immediate effect for getting a formal education. It added, “Madarsas, as institutions, are primarily responsible for imparting religious education to children. However, it is also learned that those Madarsas which are funded by the Government or recognized by the Government are imparting both religious and to some extent formal education to children.”
The Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education however opined on Thursday that conducting an investigation and identifying non-Muslim students may foster a divide between the Muslim and non-Muslim communities.
Reportedly, this also comes a day after the Uttar Pradesh government declared to introduce the NCERT syllabus to students studying in Madarsa. The government said that all the students in the Madarsa will be taught NCERT syllabus and that the teachers teaching at the Madarsa will be given the training to teach the syllabus.
