Supreme Court Upholds U.P. Madrasa Act

• The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education Act, 2004, except for provisions allowing the Board to award higher degrees.
• The court emphasized the need for the State to balance quality education with the autonomy of minority institutions.
• The madrasa system has been in existence since the Delhi Sultanate era, receiving patronage from the Khilji and Tughlaq dynasties.
• The 2004 Act regulates madrasas with respect to curriculum, standard of education, examination conduct, and teaching qualifications.
• The 2004 Act was found to violate secularism and the State’s power to create a Board for religious education.
• The Supreme Court dismissed the High Court’s finding that the 2004 Act violated secularism, stating any such infraction should be traced to an express provision of the Constitution.
• The court invalidated provisions of the 2024 Act that allowed the issuance of higher educational degrees, stating that such degrees are exclusively regulated by the UGC Act and lie beyond the legislative competence of the State legislature.