Supreme Court Upholds Constitutional Recognition for UP Madrassas, Overturns High Court Ruling

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The Supreme Court of India has issued a significant ruling on madrassas in Uttar Pradesh, granting them constitutional recognition and overturning a prior decision by the Allahabad High Court. The High Court had earlier deemed the 2004 Uttar Pradesh government law governing madrassas as unconstitutional. The Supreme Court’s decision was delivered by a bench consisting of Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Justice J.B. Pardiwala, and Justice Manoj Mishra.

On October 22, the Supreme Court had reserved its verdict on a set of petitions, including the primary one filed by Anjum Qadri, challenging the High Court’s decision. In its March 22 ruling, the Allahabad High Court had declared the Uttar Pradesh Madrasa Education Board Act, 2004 as violative of secular principles and unconstitutional, directing the state government to integrate madrassa students into the formal education system.

The Supreme Court, however, granted interim relief on April 5, staying the High Court’s order and thereby providing relief to approximately 1.7 million madrassa students in Uttar Pradesh. The state has around 25,000 madrassas, with approximately 16,500 officially recognized by the Uttar Pradesh Madrasa Education Board, out of which 560 receive government aid. Another 8,500 operate without official recognition.

The Constitution Bench, led by Chief Justice Chandrachud, emphasized the importance of balancing the promotion of quality education with the protection of minority rights. The Supreme Court stated that the objective of regulations should be to support the madrassa system rather than to undermine it. The 2004 Act, the court observed, is regulatory in nature and should be interpreted in alignment with Article 21A of the Constitution, which ensures the right to education.