AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The Uttarakhand Cabinet has approved the discontinuation of budgetary grants to 'Arabic madrasas' from the 2027–28 financial year, effectively ending government financial assistance to nearly 500 registered madrasas following the abolition of the state's Madrasa Board.
The decision comes months after the Pushkar Singh Dhami-led BJP government dissolved the Uttarakhand Madrasa Education Board and replaced it with the Uttarakhand State Minority Education Authority (USAME), a common regulatory body for educational institutions run by all six notified minority communities, including Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, and Parsis.
According to the government, the Madrasa Board formally ceased functioning on July 1, after which all recognised minority educational institutions were brought under the new authority.
Officials said the move aims to integrate minority institutions into the mainstream education system while continuing religious instruction alongside the state curriculum.
Additional Secretary to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, Bansidhar Tiwari, said the state currently has 452 registered madrasas with nearly 50,000 students enrolled.
"From July 1 this year, the Madrasa Board has ceased to operate, and the Uttarakhand State Minority Education Authority has replaced it," Tiwari was quoted as saying by The Times of India.
Under the new framework, around 400 madrasas imparting education from Classes 1 to 8 will receive recognition through district-level authorities, while 52 senior madrasas teaching Classes 9 to 12 will require recognition from the Uttarakhand Board of School Education.
The application process has been shifted online, with institutions required to obtain both recognition from the Minority Education Authority and affiliation with the state education board. Recognition will remain valid for three academic years.
The government has argued that replacing the Madrasa Board with a common authority will enable students studying in minority institutions to pursue mainstream education based on the Uttarakhand Board curriculum, improving their prospects for higher education and government employment.
Officials have said that certificates such as Maulvi, Alim, and Munsif, which were previously issued through the madrasa system, are not recognised for recruitment to government jobs.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has maintained that the new authority is intended to improve educational opportunities without affecting the religious identity or traditions of minority communities.
"The establishment of the Minority Education Authority is not intended to affect the identity or traditions of any community, but to provide better educational opportunities to all sections of society," Dhami said while inaugurating the authority.
"Our effort is to ensure that children remain connected to their cultural roots while becoming proficient in science, mathematics, computers, skill development, and modern education."
The Uttarakhand Minority Education Act, 2025, under which the new authority was constituted, was enacted after the state government's extensive crackdown on allegedly unrecognised madrasas.
During the drive, authorities sealed more than 200 madrasas, following which the government constituted a committee to overhaul the state's minority education framework.
Supreme Court order upheld the constitutional validity of the Madrasa Board
The move comes despite the Supreme Court's 2024 judgment upholding the constitutional validity of the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education Act, 2004.
The apex court had held that the state may regulate educational standards in madrasas while recognising that religious minorities have a constitutional right under Article 30 to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.
The Court also observed that although the state can prescribe academic standards as a condition for recognition or aid, such regulation must balance educational excellence with the constitutional rights of minority institutions.
"The (UP) Madrasa Act regulates the standard of education in madrasas recognised by the Board for imparting madrasa education... is consistent with the positive obligation of the state to ensure that students studying in recognised madrasas attain a level of competency that will allow them to effectively participate in society and earn a living," and "Article 21A (of the Constitution) and the Right to Education (RTE) Act have to be read consistently with the right of religious and linguistic minorities to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice," the CJI said while reading out the verdict.
The court had said that "the right of religious minorities to establish and administer institutions imparting both religious and secular education is protected by Article 30" and that "the Board and the state government have sufficient regulatory powers to prescribe and regulate standards of education for the madrasas." The court said that "while the madrasas do impart religious instruction, their primary aim is education."
At the same time, the court also held that the right of minorities to administer educational institutions is not absolute and that the state has an interest in maintaining educational standards in minority institutions and may impose regulations as a condition for the grant of aid or recognition. "The constitutional scheme allows the state to strike a balance between the two objectives of ensuring the standard of excellence of minority educational institutions and preserving the right of minorities to establish and administer their educational institutions."
Religious leaders and an opposition MP alleged that the move would affect minority education and constitutional rights.
Reacting to the Uttarakhand government's decision, Prof. Mohammad Salim Engineer, Vice President of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, said, "The way the Uttarakhand government has been functioning for some time, an atmosphere of hatred against Muslims is continuously being created there. Madrasas are being targeted. The country should function according to the Constitution, and the Constitution grants people of every religion the right to run their own institutions. In accordance with government regulations, madrasas are contributing to the field of education. They are helping make education accessible."
"Along with education, they also teach the Quran and religious studies, but they are also sharing the government's responsibility of educating people. A large number of people are becoming educated because of madrasas. Today, madrasas are not institutions that teach only Arabic and the Quran; all subjects are taught there. Hindi, English, and various other subjects are also part of the curriculum."
Samajwadi Party MP Ziaur Rahman Barq said, "This is just a poor decision. It amounts to interference with the constitutional rights guaranteed to people. In fact, such decisions should themselves be examined. People of all religions are entitled to equal constitutional rights, and it is not appropriate to interfere with those rights in this manner."
"And if the Dhami government is claiming to bring breathtaking reforms through doing so, why is it being done by abolishing already existing institutions? Make a new one and do reforms. The court should take cognisance of the practices or so-called reforms that come at the cost of targeting one community to appease another community," he added.
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