BJP governments have no plan to close madrassas: Shahnawaz Hussain

The BJP governments at the Centre and in Uttar Pradesh had no plans to shut down the madrassas and were, instead, working towards the modernisation of education imparted in these institutes, party spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain said yesterday.

The governments of the saffron party were working hard to ensure modernisation of the madrassas and the work that had started during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government in this regard was continuing under the current dispensation led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he claimed.

Hussain’s remarks came after the Lucknow-based Shia Central Waqf Board wrote to the prime minister, asking him to shut down the madrassas in the



country, alleging that the education imparted in these Islamic schools encouraged the students to join terror outfits.

“Our governments have no plan to shut down the madrassas. We are in favour of their modernisation as well as the modernisation of the education imparted there. We want that alongside religious teachings, modern education should also be imparted to the madrassa students,” the former Union minister said.He quoted Modi’s comment that madrassa students should have the Quran in one hand and computers in the other.

The BJP leader said the HRD ministry was working hard to achieve the modernisation of the madrassas in the country.