Indian BJP government stops scholarships for madrassa students across country
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India’s BJP government has stopped granting scholarships to madrassa students across the country from classes 1 to 8, reported Indian media on Tuesday.
The madrassa children from classes 1 to 5 were provided with a scholarship of Rs1,000, while students from Classes 6 to 8 received the grant depending on their courses.
In 2021, close to half a million children from around 16,558 madrassas received government-sanctioned scholarships.
The decision by the Ministry of Minority Affairs, headed by Minister Smriti Irani, to stop scholarships for madrassa students was reportedly taken since the education of students of Classes 1 to 8 is free under the Right to Education Act, and since other essential items are given to them. Other essential facilities include mid-day meals and free books.
The government said this is why only students of Classes 9 and 10 were provided with scholarships, and therefore, only their applications have been forwarded to the concerned department.
