According to an ongoing investigation by a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT), which was established by the state government in October of this year, a total of 80 madarsas in Uttar Pradesh received about Rs 100 crore in funds from foreign sources over the last two to three years. A senior official involved in the investigation stated that in multiple instances, the money was deposited straight into the bank accounts of the societies and non-governmental organisations in charge of running these madarsas.
The Additional Director General rank officer is in charge of the squad which was established to look into foreign financing sources of the institutions. The Superintendent of Police, the Cyber Cell, and the Director of the Minority Welfare Department were also included in the same team.
The Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education recognises around 16,500 of the over 25,000 madarsas in the state. The SIT obtained information on the financial accounts of the people, organisations and groups in control of the madarsas, under whom the finances were managed and examine any possible violations while conducting its inquiry.
The officer said, “We discovered that foreign funds were transferred into the bank accounts of 80 madarsas. These madarsas are located in various parts of the state, including Bahraich, Siddharth Nagar, Saharanpur, Azamgarh, and Rampur. The money was sent to bank accounts from various locations around the world, particularly the Middle East, London and Dubai.” He also mentioned that inquiries into the funding sources of other madarsas were underway.
The SIT is collecting data regarding the 80 madarsas that have been identified, as well as the entities and individuals who made the bank account deposits. The investigators also want to ascertain whether or not the payments were intended for social objectives. An officer stated, “We will seek information from the caretakers of the madarsas about those who sent the money. If necessary, we will seek assistance from central agencies such as R&AW (Research and Analysis Wing) and IB (Intelligence Bureau) to gather details. A report will be sent to central agencies for cooperation.”
Furthermore, the SIT has decided to approach these madarsas for information regarding the spending of foreign funds. The officer noted, “They will be asked to provide bills and other documents to show how they spent the money.”
Mohit Agarwal, Additional Director General (DG) of Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS), who is heading the SIT said, “We will see how the money received through foreign funding has been spent. The brief is to check if the money is being used to run madarsas or for any other activities.”
He pointed out that the inquiry is still underway and the state administration has not yet provided a deadline for concluding the probe. The SIT was established months after the state government issued District Magistrates in Nepali border areas instructions in January of this year to search for the financing sources of unrecognised madarsas that claimed donations and zakat (charity money) as their main sources of income. The agency has already asked its board for information about madarsas that are registered, according to sources with knowledge of the investigation.
During that period, Haj Dharmpal Singh, Minister for Minority Welfare, Muslim Waqf, and several madarsas in bordering areas of Nepal reported that their main sources of income were zakat and contributions. Survey teams uncovered, however, that the residents of these places were too impoverished to offer zakat or donations. These madarsas were identified and directives were conveyed out to re-examine their monetary sources.
District magistrates were instructed by the Yogi Adityanath government to survey madarsas that were not officially recognised last year. 8,449 madarsas that the state madarsa education board did not acknowledge were found to be operational throughout the two-month survey. Moradabad district was home to the majority of them.
More than 1,000 madarsas are being run in other surrounding localities in addition to Lakhimpur Kheri, Pilibhit, Shravasti, Siddharthnagar, and Bahraich which are close to the Nepali border. According to sources, these locations have seen a sharp rise in the madarsa numbers in recent years.
