The Supreme Court has upheld the validity of Uttar Pradesh Madarsa Education Board Act, 2004, which the Allahabad High Court had declared the Act “unconstitutional” on March 22 this year.
Challenging the High Court's decision, petitions were filed by Anjum Qadri, Managers Association Madaris Arabia (UP), All India Teachers Association Madaris Arabia (New Delhi), Managers Association Arabic Madrasa New Bazar and Teachers Association Madaris Arabia Kanpur. During the two-day hearing, the petitioners had argued that the High Court had wrongly construed the UP Madrasa Act as having the objective of imparting religious instruction instead of looking at its actual purpose.
The Supreme Court observed that the intent of the Act was to standardise the level of education being provided by madarsas. It did not uphold the High Court’s view that the Act interfered with the rights of minorities. Instead, the Court observed, it ensured that students who passed out would be able to earn a decent living.
Those opposing the Act had said that madarsa education has undermined the promise of quality education under Article 21A of the Constitution. Though one has the freedom to take religious education, it cannot be accepted as an alternative to mainstream education.
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The Supreme Court set aside those provisions of the Act which give the Madarsa Board powers to prescribe courses of instructions and text books for higher education - kamil (postgraduate course) and fazil (junior research programme).
The Court held that the same would be in violation of the University Grants Commission Act (UGC Act).
The High Court, in its judgment, had directed the Uttar Pradesh government to formulate a scheme so that students currently studying in madarsas could be accommodated in the formal education system. The decision had come months after the state government had decided to survey Islamic educational institutions. In October 2023, the state government had constituted a SIT to investigate funding of madarsas from abroad.