West Bengal shuts down 252 madrasas, sends show-cause notices to 100

The 252 madrasas that have been served closure notices are devoid of minimum infrastructure.

By: Soumitra.NandiKOLKATA: The state minority affairs and madrasa education department has sent closure notices to 252 madrasas across the state and issued show-cause notices to about 100 others following a survey of unaided madrasas.“The 252 madrasas that have been served closure notices are devoid of minimum infrastructure. The 100-odd that have been issued show-cause will have to respond and and if their replies are found to be unsatisfactory, we will take action against them too. We want madrasa students to pursue modern, mainstream education and shine in life just like students from other schools,” said Kshudiram Tudu, minister-in-charge of the department.

2,396 functioning without registration

Malda leads the list of closures with around 44-45 madrasas while North Dinajpur is second with around 37, followed by 32-odd in South 24 Parganas and about 25 each in Murshidabad and Nadia.The action followed a field verification through the district administration of all madrasas, with particular focus on Khariji madrasas. The aim was to identify madrasas functioning without authorisation and ensure compliance with regulatory framework.

Khariji madrasas are independent Islamic schools that operate without govt funding, formal recognition or regulatory control. They rely entirely on public donations and charitable trusts.

Deviation from syllabus, lack of classroom space among issues

The magistrates of all 22 districts and the Kolkata area submitted reports on madrasas functioning within their respective jurisdictions. Detailed information relating to registration status, management, student enrolment and identity, teaching staff, infrastructure and sources of funding were collected and scrutinised.The DMs reported that about 2,132 madrasas were functioning with proper registration/affiliation etc, while 2,396 were functioning without the required registration/affiliation from any govt or board. The department deputed dedicated inspection/investigation teams from the state level for re-verification of the reports received to ascertain that correctness of information furnished by the institutions corresponded with the actual position on the ground.The infrastructural lacunae at the madrasas included non-availability of classroom space, inadequate students or teachers, stark deviation from standard state school syllabus or administrative rules.According to a senior Nabanna official, state govt found that in a good number of Khariji madrasas, anti-India education was being imparted and innocent students were being brainwashed, that has prompted the survey exercise. The department will continue the verification and enforcement exercise and take strict, evidence-based and legally sustainable action against institutions found to be unauthorised or non-compliant.