Hyderabad: Following the suit of Uttar Pradesh and Assam, the Telangana government has sent notices to officials of religious seminaries across the state, demanding information about the students studying in madrasas.
Amid election campaigns, these notices in Nalgonda district have left the seminaries puzzled.
The District Welfare Officer issued notice no. 3029/MV/DCPU/2023 on November 2, on behalf of the Department of Women, Children, Discipline, and Center Citizens of the Government of Telangana, asking the madrassa to provide details of students enrolled in their institutions.
The notice references memo no. 3029/ICPS/2023 issued by the Joint Director Department on November 1, stating that it is issued in accordance with the department’s instructions to gather information about the establishment and affiliations of these religious seminaries, as well as whether non-Muslim students are admitted.
The state government will send these details to the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights. Similar notices have been dispatched to religious seminaries in other districts of the state.
While presented as an effort to protect child rights, this move raises questions as it indirectly inquires about the admission of non-Muslim students in these madrasas.
In recent past, such information was used by the governments of Uttar Pradesh and Assam to launch extensive operations against religious seminaries, leading to concerns about these inquiries among those responsible for such institutions.
The government’s decision to collect student details from religious seminaries and forward them to a central government institution has sparked debate and uncertainty among various stakeholders.
