Big decision of Dhami Cabinet: Madrasa Board in Uttarakhand ends, Minority Education Act will come

Dehradun

A total of five proposals have been approved in the cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami in Uttarakhand Secretariat. One of these decisions is related to the Uttarakhand Minority Educational Institute Act, 2025. The cabinet has approved this bill and will be introduced in the assembly session starting today.

According to the state government, till now the status of minority educational institution in the state was given only to the Muslim community, but after the proposed Act came into force, Sikh, Jain, Christian, Buddhist and Parsi communities will also get this facility. The government claims that with this step, Uttarakhand will become the first state in the country which has prepared a singular and transparent process to recognize educational institutions of all minority communities.

After the Act is implemented, from 1 July 2026, Uttarakhand Madrasa Board of Education and Arabic-Persian Madrasa Recognition Rules, 2019 will be dissolved. Instead of the board, Uttarakhand Minority Education Authority will now be formed. This new authority will recognize and monitor all the minority educational institutions of the state.

452 madrasas registered under madrasa board

At present, 452 madrasas are registered under the Madrasa Board in the state. After the Act is implemented, they will also have to get recognition from the new authority. The government says that this new structure will ensure quality and transparency in education and will protect institutional rights. For recognition, registration of institutions will be mandatory in the Society Act, Trust Act or Company Act. Also, it will be necessary to record the respective land and properties in the name of the institute.

Congress raised questions on the decision of Dhami cabinet

The Congress has questioned this bill. The party’s national spokesperson Sujata Paul has launched a scathing attack on the state government. He says that the assembly session is about to begin and the government does not have any concrete issues related to the public. The law and order situation is deteriorating, but the government is only trying to target a particular community.

Sujata Paul also said that in our constitution, Articles 29 and 30 guarantee the educational rights of minorities. Apart from this, in 1992 and 2004, the Central Government made laws related to minority education. In such a situation, it is wrong to say that only Muslims are getting the benefit of being minority. He also questioned the education system of the state.

According to Sujata Paul, the general education system in Uttarakhand has been crumbled. There are no schools and teachers in many places, but the government is so soon to bring this bill as if this is the biggest priority.

What did experts say on the plan to dissolve the madrasa board?

On the decision of Pushkar Singh Dhami cabinet, Islamic affairs expert Khurshid Ahmed says, “The law that the government is talking about is a severe violation of Article 30A. According to the act brought in 2004, there is already a minority commission in the country, which recognizes educational institutions.”