DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday pronounced its verdict on pleas challenging the Allahabad High Court judgment that declared the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madrasa Education Act, 2004 as unconstitutional. In its order, the court upheld the law as “constitutional”, and clarified that the madrasas running under the said Act would continue to operate.
However, the court held that the Madrasa Act, to the extent it regulates higher education in relation to ‘fazil’ and ‘kamil’ degrees, conflicts with the University Grants Commission (UGC) Act and to that extent it was unconstitutional.
The court also held that the provisions of the Madrasa Act are reasonable as they subserve the need for regulation and secure the interests of the minority community as they regulate the standards of education, conduct examinations and confer certificates allowing them to pursue higher education.
The order was pronounced by a bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandracuhd, Justice JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra.
On October 22, a bench comprising CJI DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra had reserved the judgement on eight petitions, including the lead one filed by Anjum Kadari, against the Allahabad High Court verdict.
Earlier, on March 22, the Allahabad High Court had declared the Act as “unconstitutional” and violative of the principle of secularism and asked the state government to accommodate madrasa students in the formal schooling system.
On April 5, the CJI-led bench had provided a breather to about 17 lakh madrasa students by staying the verdict of the Allahabad High Court scrapping the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madrasa Education Act, 2004.
During the hearing, the CJI had observed that secularism means to “live and let live”.
