LUCKNOW: The Allahabad High Court has declared the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madrasa Education Act 2004 as unconstitutional. Lucknow bench announced the verdict today. The court has also directed the Uttar Pradesh government to transfer the students studying in madrasas to other schools. A bench comprising Justice Vivek Chaudhary and Justice Subhash Vidyarthi passed the verdict on a petition filed by Anshumar Singh Rathore.

In December 2023, the division bench had raised concerns about the transparency of governance of madrasa educational institutions. The High Court questioned the state government and the central government about running the Madrasa Board under the Minorities Department instead of the State Education Department. The court also asked why madrassas are run under the State Ministry of Minority Welfare legally while the educational institutions of other minority communities like Jain, Sikh and Christian sections are run under the Ministry of Education.

The court order comes months after the state government decided to conduct a survey of Islamic educational institutions in Uttar Pradesh. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted in October 2023 to probe the funding of madrasas from abroad. The inquiry report has recommended action against more than eight thousand madrassas. According to the SIT report, around 80 madrasas in the border areas have received foreign funding of Rs 100 crore.