On 21st Jan, 2009 Economic Times reported the following :
Some other links:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/3227446.cms http://www.bhatkallys.net/news/news.asp?aid=4548This is a very dangerous move. There is no commitment on any board that can monitor the content of the Islamic teachings.There won't be any standard criteria for passing. According to the Deobandis, the madrassas are there purely to produce Islamic scholars. How can the Madrasa educated people be given CBSE equivalent certificates without modernized content? This will only encourage radicalism and orthodoxy within the government. This will only increase national security threat - both external as well as internal. The madrasa educated people will also be able to apply to colleges and seek govt jobs with these certificates.
Contributed by Shri Kumar Manglam
In the interim report submitted by the committee to Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Arjun Singh; it was proposed that the 'Aalim' degrees offered by Madrasas should be recognized in all the universities for admissions into the B.A. course. The 'Fazil' degree offered by any Madrasa, Darul Uloom or Jamia should be recognized by all Universities for admissions to post graduate programmes, the committee recommended. It also suggested that Madrasa education should be covered under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA). So now IAS, IPS, military , CRPF you will find Moulvis only with religious education in Arabic and Farsi ruling India.
A major part of the existing curriculum in almost all madrasas consists of the teaching of Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh). Many of these detailed rules and laws were devised centuries ago and may have lost their relevance in today's context. As someone who has written extensively on modern fiqh issues (jadid fiqhi masail) with regard to a host of contemporary issues that were obviously unknown to the early Islamic scholars.
madrasas now give much more attention than they presently do to the principles of jurisprudence (usul-e fiqh), because while several minor fiqh details (juzuvi masail) can and do change over time, and hence require new interpretations, these basic principles are unchanging. Knowledge of these principles is essential for engaging in ijtihad or creative reflection with regard to a host of contemporary issues that were obviously unknown to the early Islamic scholars.
Months after the first set back to the Indian educational system when the Congress' central HRD minister Arjun Singh set the stone rolling for reservations (including the creamy layered ones) in higher education comes another... Just before the following general elections, Arjun Singh proclaimed that his government is tabling a bill to recognize Madrasa certification at par with that of CBSE.Madrasas have been institutions of learning, where "Islamic sciences including literary and philosophical ones are taught" (Encyclopedia of Islam - Leiden E.J.Brill). The avowed aim of madrasa education is to inculcate the belief and practice of Islam among its followers and guide them to follow the Quran (Collection of God's revelations to Prophet Mohammad) and Sunna (Traditions of the Prophet Mohammed).Madrasas in India and their workings all along remained religion-centric. Subjects related to Islam dominate its curriculum and have largely ignored the rational sciences. The ultra-orthodox teachings at the Madrasas encourage the students to isolate themselves from the national mainstream... this coupled with lack of transparency in their operation encourages several conspiracies further splintering our already divided society in this time of terror, suspicion, and hate. This is to the extent that recently the government had reportedly issued notices to keep several madrasas under watch for anti-national activities.A responsible government would need to encourage all sects and religions to join the mainstream. However, what is happening currently is far from what was expected. Recognizing and accepting religions differences is one thing and encouraging religions differences is altogether another. Today, Arjun Singh has set a very dangerous precedent by declaring that they are working on a bill to equate Madrasa certification with that of CBSE, so that the madrasa educated gentry may qualify for government jobs (read IAS, IPS, IFS etc). What is the governance model being set for the future generations? Had Raja Ram Mohan Roy had accepted the Sati system since it was the "religious belief" of the time, we may still have been living with it.Today the religious orthodoxy is being encouraged by the proposed amendment to educational law. What is going to come next... separate constitutions for the different religions? Indian Muslim organizations have for long demanded a separate Sharia law for their society. Would that be on the cards next? On the same lines as Arjun Singh's thinking, one might argue that Vedic certification too be accepted for government positions, and so should the monks studying in Buddhist monasteries.
Can some one File PIL in supreme court that why vedic, sikh, buddhists school students not get Central aid and recognize their education with equivalent degrees ?
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