Assam Education Minister Ranoj Pegu on Wednesday said that the Assam government may regulate all the private madrassas in the state under an existing Act. The proposal has come after several madrassa teachers have been arrested for their alleged links with terror outfits.
Education Minister Pegu said, “Although no concrete step has been taken as of now, the government is considering if private seminaries can be brought under the control of the Assam Non-Government Educational Institutions (Regulation and Management) Act, 2006."
When asked if the private madrassas will be controlled, the minister responded, “We were not looking into it till now. We already have an Act to monitor non-governmental educational institutions. But, all non-governmental schools are not covered under this Act right now.” The government is gradually taking measures to bring all the non-governmental educational institutions under this existing Act for their regulation and monitoring, the minister said.
“Whether these private madrassas will fall under that category or not, we will examine in consultation with the Law Department. So far, nothing has been done, but we may consider it,” he added.
Earlier this month, Director General of Police Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta said that there are about 3,000 registered and unregistered private madrassas across the state that are run by four main Muslim organisations. From 1 April last year, all the 610 state-run madrassas in Assam were converted into upper primary, high and higher secondary schools with no change of status, pay, allowances and service conditions for the teaching and non-teaching staff.
Altogether 42 people, many of them teachers of madrassas, have been arrested across Assam since March this year for their alleged links with terror outfits Al-Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT).
Mahanta had said that the government would soon launch a portal, in which all madrassas have to upload their relevant details such as location, teachers’ names and addresses, and salaries among others. Four educational centres have been demolished in many of the districts in Assam after the arrest incident.