The Uttar Pradesh Madrassa Board had made an objectionable and silly statement that it will continue to admit non-Muslim students in madrassas, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) chief Priyank Kanoongo said on Friday after the child rights panel asked state chief secretaries to identify madrassas which are being attended by non-Muslim students as well.
“We have received complaints from various places about non-Muslim students attending madrassas funded or recognized by the government. We have issued notices to all state chief secretaries to identify such madrassas and shift non-Muslim students from these madrassas to the schools,” NCPCR chief Priyank Kanoongo told ANI.
Uttar Pradesh Madrasa Education Council Chairman Iftikhar Ahmed Javed had earlier urged the NCPCR to reconsider their letter urging states and UTs to conduct a detailed inquiry of all recognized madrasas admitting non-Muslim children. The child rights panel had also recommended the chief secretaries facilitate admission of all non-Muslim students in the said Madrasas to formal schools subsequent to the inquiry besides the mapping of all unmapped madrasas.
Madrasas are primarily responsible for imparting religious education to children. They are of three types “Recognised Madrasas”, “Unrecognised Madrasas” and “Unmapped Madrasas”.
Replying to the child rights panel’s letter, Iftikhar said, “Non-Muslims are studying in madrasas and non-Hindu children are studying in Sanskrit schools. Children of every religion are also studying in missionary schools. Even though I myself studied at Banaras Hindu University (BHU), NCPCR should reconsider their letter.”
To this, Kanoongo said, “The Uttar Pradesh Madrassa Board had made an objectionable and silly statement that it will continue to admit non-Muslim students in madrassas. Hence, we have written to Special Secretary Minorities that giving Islamic education to non-Muslim students is a violation of Article 28(3) and asked them to reply within three days.”
