Why Madrasa Board Under Minority Dept, Not Education?; Can Persons Of Specific Religion Only Be Appointed To Board?: Allahabad HC Asks UOI, UP Govt

Amid the ongoing controversy over madrasas in Uttar Pradesh, with the state government surveying the Islamic education institutions in 2022 and forming an SIT last month to probe madrassas' funds from abroad, the Allahabad High Court last week questioned the need for the Madarsa Board to run under the Minority Department rather than the Education Department of the state.

The bench of Justice Vivek Chaudhary and Justice Subhash Vidyarthi also mulled as to whether individuals of only a specific religion can be appointed to the Madrasa board.

Raising these queries with the Union of India, the Uttar Pradesh government and the UP Madarsa Education Board, the Court has sought clarification on the rationale behind these arrangements concerning the purposes for which the Board is constituted.

The Court has further raised concerns about potential arbitrariness and the need for transparency in the administration of educational institutions, emphasizing the broader issue of whether such decisions align with principles of equal opportunity and secular governance. The outcome of this inquiry could have implications for the structure and functioning of the Madarsa Boards in the state.

The occasion to raise these queries arose while the bench was dealing with a writ petition filed by one Anshuman Singh Rathore raising certain issues with regard to Madarsa Board and the management of Madarsa by the Minority Welfare Department, both by Union of India and State Government and other connected issues.

During the course of the hearing in the matter, the Court, in its order, passed last week, noted that the HC has, in October 2019, already referred a similar set of essential questions surrounding the concerns of the functioning and structure of the Madrasa board to a Larger Bench (Writ Petition No.29324 (S/S) of 2019: Mohammad Javed Vs. State of U.P. and others).

The questions referred to a larger bench are:

"(i) Since the Madarsa Board is constituted for education in 'Arbic, Urdu, Parsian, Islamic-studies, Tibb Logic, Philosophy and includes such other branches of learning as may be specified by the Board from time to time', how come persons of a particular religion are provided to be member of the same? It does not talks about exponence in the aforesaid fields, for the purposes of which the Board is constituted, but persons of specific religion. It was put to learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel as to whether the purpose of the Board is to impart religious education only, to which he submits that a perusal of the Madarsa Education Act, 2004 does not indicate so.

(ii) With a secular constitution in India can persons of a particular religion be appointed/nominated in a Board for education purposes or it should be persons belonging to any religion, who are exponent in the fields for the purposes of which the Board is constituted or such persons should be appointed, without any regard to religion, who are exponent in the field for the purposes of which the Board is constituted?

(iii) The Act further provides the Board to function under the Minority Welfare Ministry of State of U.P., hence, a question arises as to whether it is arbitrary for providing the Madarsa education to be run under the Minority Welfare Department while all the other education institutions including those belonging to other minorities communities like Jains, Sikhs, Christians etc being run under the Education Ministry and whether it arbitrarily denies the benefit of experts of education and their policies to the children studying in Madarsa?

The Court further noted that though the pleadings in the case have been exchanged between the parties, however, the Union of India, the State Government and the U.P. Madarsa Education Board have not provided their clear and specific policies and views about the aforesaid issues and the counter affidavits filed in response to the said queries are only formal in nature.

Against this backdrop, stressing ed that the issues impact a huge number of students in the country and the quality of their education, more so when read with Article 21-A of the Constitution of India, the Court directed the counsels for Madarsa Board, Union of India and the State Government to bring all available material/views of the respective parties before the Court along with any policies in vogue on their part with three weeks.

The matter has now been posted for further hearing on January 8, 2024.