Madrasas, Muslim alienation

The Supreme Court of India’s Recommendations on Madrasas

• The Supreme Court of India has stayed the recommendations of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) to stop government funding to madrasas that do not comply with the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009 and to conduct an inspection of all madrasas.
• The NCPCR’s initiative is guided by the ideology of ‘vicharadhara’, which declares religious minorities as enemies of the nation.
• The NCPCR’s directive issued to State governments on October 11, 2024, was under this Act.
• The NCPCR has been accused of manipulating rules and regulations to achieve their ulterior motives.

The Concept and History of Madrasas

• The NCPCR demands that children belonging to other religious groups should be thrown out of madrasas.
• The concept of madrasas is inconsistent with the realities of Indian history and society.
• The madrasa system has been used for both religious and secular schools since the days of the Delhi Sultanate.
• The government has the power to prevent anything illegal and detrimental to national security.

Social Justice and Not Appeasement

• Kerala, a state with an exemplary system of primary education, does not need to run madrasas with financial assistance from the government.
• The Madrasa Teachers’ Welfare Fund, the financial source of pension and other benefits, is based on the policy of social justice.
• The action of the NCPCR fuels the alienation of religious minorities, showing justice neither to the Child Rights Act nor to the country.

Aggressive Majoritarianism

• The NCPCR has shut its eyes to the fact that religious minorities are passing through days of insecurity.
• The move of the NCPCR can only be approached in this socio-political context.
• The people of India, upholding constitutional values, urge the NCPCR to step back from its present move.