Muslim teachers' organisations believe the move as part of a wider pattern of harassment against Muslim-run religious schools in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh
NEW DELHI – The Uttar Pradesh government has once again drawn criticism from Muslim teachers’ associations and civil rights groups after it issued a new directive for an investigation into the financial and administrative details of madrasas operating in the state.
In a letter issued this week, the Registrar of the UP Madrasa Education Board, RP Singh, instructed all District Minority Welfare Officers to collect detailed information on madrasas, including their source of income, property ownership, foreign funding registration, fee collection, and even expenses on furniture and decoration.
The order cites a communication from Ankit Kumar Agarwal, Director of the Minority Welfare Department, and includes a Google Sheet format that must be filled in by all district officials. The sheet asks for extensive details such as the madrasa’s location, approval status, management names, land value, number of rooms, and construction costs. Special attention is to be given to unregistered madrasas showing “abnormal” financial growth, and those not registered under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA).
The move has sparked strong reaction from Muslim teachers’ organisations who believe this is part of a wider pattern of harassment against Muslim-run religious schools in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh.
Maulana Tariq Shamsi, National Vice President of the All India Teachers’ Association, questioned the motive behind the order. “Such details have already been collected several times over the years. Intelligence agencies already have this data. What is the purpose of asking again and again? It is clearly to create an atmosphere of doubt around madrasas,” he said.
He further added, “Is the government collecting similar data from other religious institutions like Gurukuls and Christian missionary schools? If not, then it’s a direct violation of constitutional rights and religious freedom. Discrimination against one community is not acceptable in a secular democracy.”
The letter comes after several similar surveys in the past year, all of which have stirred tension among madrasa staff and the wider Muslim community.
“This is being done to spread fear among madrasa managers and to make people suspect their educational and religious activities,” said Diwan Sahib Zaman Khan, General Secretary of the Teachers Association Madrasas Arabia in UP.
Khan expressed concern over the government’s intention to assess the “current value” of assets acquired through years of hard work.
“The government wants to examine how much money has been spent on decoration and furniture, and how fees or donations are collected. This level of intrusion is not normal, and it feels like the Minority Welfare Department is trying to frighten us,” he said.
“This kind of attitude completely goes against the idea of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas’ (support for all, development for all, trust for all). We ask the chief minister to take notice,” Khan added.
A section of madrasa leaders believes that the new order is politically motivated and timed to fuel suspicion ahead of elections or public campaigns.
One madrasa official, who did not wish to be named, said, “If the government really wanted transparency, they would treat all religious institutions equally. Why target only madrasas again and again? Our data is already on the Madrasa Board portal.”
Many of the madrasas in Uttar Pradesh operate on donations and cater to underprivileged Muslim children who cannot afford mainstream private schooling. Most are small institutions with basic facilities and serve as both religious and primary educational centres.
The officials behind the new order argue that the request is part of a regular review to improve transparency and maintain records, but this explanation has failed to calm the outrage.
The renewed scrutiny comes amid a broader pattern of suspicion and crackdowns on minority institutions under the Yogi Adityanath-led government. In previous months, various reports of unrecognised madrasas being surveyed and shut down were widely reported, raising fears of a systemic effort to marginalise religious education in the Muslim community.
Muslim groups have called for an end to what they term “selective targeting” and have demanded a clear public explanation from the government about the purpose of repeated data collection drives.
Until such clarification comes, mistrust continues to grow.
As Maulana Tariq Shamsi put it plainly, “If this is about improving education, we are ready to cooperate. But if the aim is to harass and intimidate, then we will oppose it strongly.”
No official response has yet been made by the Uttar Pradesh government regarding the objections raised by madrasa groups.
