Following the directive from the Yogi government in Uttar Pradesh, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) tasked with probing illegal madrasas has submitted its findings to the administration. The report advocates for the closure of approximately 13,000 unauthorised madrasas. Many of these Islamic institutions were discovered to be situated near the Nepal border. Moreover, investigations revealed that these illicit madrasas were established within the past two decades, with funding predominantly sourced from Gulf nations.
According to reports, Among the 13,000 madrasas flagged for action, a significant number is distributed across seven districts, including Bahraich, Shravasti, and Maharajganj. Notably, each border district hosts over 500 of these madrasas. However, when the SIT probed into their financial records, they encountered a startling revelation: these madrasas were unable to provide any account of their income and expenditure.
The team has raised suspicions that these madrasas were established as part of a meticulously orchestrated conspiracy. Funds potentially collected for terrorist financing may have been routed through hawala channels to construct these madrasas.
The suspicion continues to mount as during the investigation, officials questioned how the madrasas were built, to which the response was simply “with donation money.” However, when authorities pressed madrasa operators to disclose the donors’ identities, no information was provided, indicating a lack of transparency in the funding sources.
Apart from this, it has also been revealed that sexual abuse of children has also been happening in these madrasas. Also, it has come out that the children studying here have problems in getting a job. Out of the 23,000 madrasas scrutinised by the SIT, 5,000 received provisional recognition. Simultaneously, some institutions appeared disinterested in adhering to the standards required for recognition. Remarkably, only 5,000 madrasas in the state demonstrated no issues in this regard.
OpIndia prominently highlighted the issue of illegal madrasas in 2022, with over 25 ground reports addressing the matter on our website. These reports shed light on the demographic shifts observed in villages bordering Nepal, as well as incidents of love jihad in these areas.
