Strict orders issued on attendance of Hindu children.
Highlights
Government takes strict action after complaints against madrassas. Recognition of madrassas imparting religious education will be cancelled. School education department directed to inspect madrassas.
State Bureau, Naiduniya, Bhopal: The state government has issued strict orders to stop non-Muslim children from studying in madrasas in Madhya Pradesh. Madrasas have been warned that if Hindu children are found studying there, not only will their financial aid be stopped, but their recognition will also be cancelled. For this, the state government has cited Article 28 (3) of the Constitution.
Instructions for inspection of madrasas
It is said that according to this article, religious education cannot be provided to non-Muslim children without the consent of their parents. In an order issued by Madhya Pradesh Commissioner of Public Education Shilpa Gupta, the school education department officials have been instructed to inspect all madrasas to see if non-Muslim children are studying in them.
Action on having non-Muslim children
Instructions have been given to take action against those madrasas where non-Muslim children are found studying. Let us tell you that in an earlier investigation conducted at the government level, names of Hindus were also found registered in 56 madrasas in Madhya Pradesh. It is believed that the state government has taken this step only after this.
Parental consent is mandatory
In the order of the Madhya Pradesh Government, it has been clarified that no student in any educational institution should be forced to participate in any religious education or attend religious worship unless the parents of the child have given their consent for it.
Article 28(3) of the Indian Constitution clearly states that no educational institution shall compel children to receive any religious education without the consent of their parents.
There were complaints that Hindu children were studying in madrasas. Investigation of the complaints revealed that madrasas were only running on paper. Thousands of Hindu children were studying in madrasas. No religion can forcibly teach another religion. All educational institutions in the state will have to follow the rules. Strict action will be taken to cancel the recognition of educational institutions found violating the rules. Whether they are aided schools, private institutions or madrasas, irregularities will not be tolerated in any of them.
Uday Pratap Singh, School Education Minister, MP