Why the Supreme Court upheld constitutional validity of UP Madarsa Act, 2004

News: The Supreme Court upheld the constitutional validity of the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education Act, 2004, except the provisions related to higher education. It has overruled the Allahabad High Court’s earlier ruling which struck down the entire act on grounds of violating secularism.

1. The Madarsa Act provides for the legal framework for madarsa education, where both religious education and mainstream secular education is imparted.

2. The Act establishes the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education, which prepares and prescribes course material and conducts exams for all courses, including the Maulvi and Fazil courses.

3. The Allahabad High Court struct down the Act in its entirety on the following main grounds: A) Violating the principles of secularism, which is part of basic structure of the constitution B) Made it compulsory for students to study Islam and modern subjects were made optional C) Violated the right to education under Article 21A D) Board’s powers to grant higher education degrees conflicted with the University Grants Commission Act, 1956.

4. The Supreme Court upheld the Act on three main grounds: A) Basic structure test not required as it is used to test constitutional amendments, not an ordinary legislation B) States can regulate madarsas, till such regulation is reasonable and rational C) Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act 2006 (RTE Act) must not apply to minority institutions to protect their minority character.

5. However, the SC struck down a part of the Madarsa Act’s Section 9 for conflicting with the UGC Act, 1956. Section 9 empowered the board to prescribe coursework, conduct exams, and grant degrees for Kamil and Fazil courses.