Ministers fear non-cooperation by madrasas
The opposition by Muslim clerics over the decision of providing financial aid to madrasas for modern education has worried many ministers, who expressed their concern during the Cabinet meet on Wednesday.
Some Muslim clerics have strongly opposed the financial assistance to madrasas alleging that the decision was taken keeping in mind the forthcoming elections. They have expressed their fear that the government may begin interfering in the madrasa administration in the name of government grants.
According to sources, the issue was raised by PWD minister (MSRDC) Jaydutta Kshirsagar, who claimed that a section of the community was not happy with the idea of the modernisation of madrasas.
Mr Kshirsagar said that some clerics met him and said that they will not register their madrasas for any such grant. However, without registration, the madrasas will not be able to get financial help from the state government. He expressed his concern about the possibility of success of the scheme in the midst of such non-cooperation, said a senior minister on the condition of anonymity.
He was supported by other ministers like relief and rehabilitation minister Patangrao Kadam and home minister R.R. Patil. Both are of the view that educational institutions attached to other communities should also be provided with such financial assistance.
However, minority affairs minister Arif Naseem Khan clarified that the decision is not new. In fact, it was the NDA government that had sanctioned the grant for madrasas way back in 2002.
The minority affairs minister informed the Cabinet that the NDA government had spent `12 crore annually on madrasas.
Mr Khan further said that the remuneration of teachers in the madrasas was also doubled to `3,000 by then HRD minister Dr Murli Manohar Joshi.
Mr Khan told the Cabinet that in the Gujarat Assembly elections held last year, chief minister Narendra Modi had incorporated the madrasa modernisation scheme in his election manifesto and that chief minister Prithviraj Chavan had agreed to approve financial grants to other religious educational institutions.
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