Chicago – March 24, 2024
A court in India effectively banned Islamic schools in the country’s most populous state, potentially further alienating many Muslims from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu-nationalist government ahead of the national elections.
The verdict on Friday overturns a 2004 law governing madrasas in Uttar Pradesh, stating it breaches India’s constitutional secularism and orders that students be transferred to regular schools.
The Allahabad High Court judgment affects 2.7 million students and 10,000 teachers in 25,000 madrasas, according to Iftikhar Ahmed Javed, president of the state’s madrasa education board. In the state, one-fifth of the population is Muslim.
“The state government shall also ensure that children between the ages of 6 and 14 years are not left without admission in duly recognised institutions,” Judges Subhash Vidyarthi and Vivek Chaudhary said in their judgment, which was issued in response to an appeal by lawyer Anshuman Singh Rathore.
India will have a general election between April and June, with Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) widely likely to win. Muslims and rights groups have accused some BJP members and associates of spreading anti-Islamic hate speech and vigilantism, as well as damaging Muslim-owned homes.
Modi denies religious discrimination exists in India.
