The Assam Christian Forum has voiced their concern over the cabinet’s approval to the Assam Private Educational Institutions (Regulation of Fees) Amendment Bill, 2025, claiming that it would strip away protections for minority-run schools by allowing “unchecked government control” over their fee structures.
The Assam cabinet had approved the amendment bill on Tuesday to streamline the fee structure, including a check on arbitrary fee hikes of non-government/private schools, including those run by minority organisations and those operating in rural areas.
The ACF, in a statement issued on Tuesday said, that the bill “ends the previous hands-off approach” for minority schools and hands the government “sweeping powers” to fix fees, monitor collections and intervene at will.
For Christian missionary institutions, which have been pillars of education in Assam for over a century, this feels like a direct attack on their freedom to run schools in line with their values and needs, the statement said.
The ACF is a non-profit coalition of Christian leaders, educators and community groups in Assam, dedicated to promoting justice, education and interfaith dialogue
since 1995.
There are over 1.2 million Christians in the state. The first Christian educational institution, the Nowgong Mission Higher Secondary School in Nagaon. There are around 500 Christian-run educational institutes in Assam.
“We are pained (over the move) and feel intimidated. These schools are not businesses; they are nation builders, our community’s heartbeat, preserving our identity, language and culture through education. Now, the government wants to decide how we fund them, which could force many to close or lose what makes them special,” ACF chairman Archbishop John Moolachira said.
The fears run deep, given the earlier passing of the Assam Healing (Prevention of Evil) Practices Act, 2024 (Assam Act No.VIII of 2024), where Christians are targeted, the ACF stated.
The ACF said: “Without the ability to set reasonable fees, these schools may struggle to pay teachers, maintain facilities or offer scholarships to poor students – many from tribal and remote areas. This could dilute the unique Christian ethos that has defined them, violating the sacred promise in Article 30(1) of the Indian Constitution, which guarantees minorities, both religious and linguistic, right to establish and manage their own educational
institutions...”
“ACF worries this is the start of more interference, threatening the very survival of minority education in a diverse state like Assam,” it added.
The forum recalled the contributions of Christian missionaries in Assam since the 19th century.
“They built the first schools and pioneered modern education, boosting literacy rates from near zero to over 70 per cent today,” the ACF said.
“These schools didn’t wait for permissions, they created opportunities where none existed,” added Rev. Bernard K. Marak, vice-chairman, ACF, and general secretary, Assam Baptist Convention.
The ACF has urged the BJP-led Assam government to pause and “rethink” the bill.
“Amend it to respect minority rights — include our voices in any oversight body and protect our autonomy. Let’s build on our shared legacy, not tear it down. Education unites us; let’s keep it that way,” the ACF chairman said.