Last week, Uttar Pradesh Minority Affairs Minister Dharampal Singh said that the Waqf board properties are illegally possessed by mafias (goons) and that the government would run bulldozers to reclaim the encroached waqf properties in the state. “The Waqf Board lands are occupied by the mafias. The government will work to free the lands and use them for the welfare of minorities”, he said at the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) on April 2.
Singh also commented on the education provided by the Madarsas in Uttar Pradesh. He directed the Madarsas to provide education that inspires nationalism instead of terrorism and said that only those Madarsas will be allowed to operate which stop glorifying the tales of terrorists. “Nationalism should be taught in Madarsas and not terrorism. UP Govt 2.0 will emphasize commercial education”, Singh said while talking to the media.
Madrassas to now teach nationalism, not terrorism: UP minister Dharampal Singh’s comment sparks controversy@amir_haque joins us with all the latest.#UttarPradesh #DharampalSingh | @Swatij14 pic.twitter.com/kviR3623IK
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“Madarsas are an integral component of India’s education system. A primary reason is that historically, the country’s Muslim population has been disproportionately disadvantaged in education. There is lack of scientific and secular subjects in the curriculum and graduates find it difficult to find employment”, Singh stated.
Dharampal Singh also added that the madrasa education syllabus in the state will be based on the Centre’s New Education Policy. Singh, who won the last assembly elections from the Aonla seat in Bareilly said that the madrasa education syllabus will be changed and the students will be imparted commercial education.
Earlier, Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai’s political secretary and MLA MP Renukacharya had also said that he would urge the Chief Minister to ban madrasas as they are creating anti-national elements. “Madrasas teach provocative lessons to young minds and they become anti-national elements in the future. So we don’t need such institutes. Let Muslim students study in regular schools as they are also children of Indians or else madrasas must teach the regular syllabus”, he had said.
Meanwhile, Dharampal Singh also said that the government had planned to build gaushalas (cowsheds) in each of the municipalities across the state to protect cows. “A major cow shed will be made in every municipality of the state. The cows in the shelter will not roam free. Cows of superior breeds with high milk yield will also be kept in cow shelters,” Singh said.
He said that the gaushalas will be financially enriched so that there would be no need for external financial help for their management. “The gaushalas will be maintained through the income earned by the sale of cow milk and cow dung and other related products”, he noted. Dharampal Singh won the last assembly elections from the Aonla seat in Bareilly. Along with the Minority Affairs department Singh also holds the portfolio of Uttar Pradesh’s Animal Husbandry department.
