Memorandum from the National Muslim Coordination Committee demanding a separate education board for madrasa, gurukul and monastery education .

Istayak Aman

Kathmandu, Nepal.

The National Muslim Coordination Committee has submitted a memorandum to the chairmen of two parliamentary committees demanding the formation of a separate education board for the effective management of madrasa, gurukul and monastery education in the School Education Bill.

The committee met Ramhari Khatiwada, Chairman of the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee of the House of Representatives, and Ammar Bahadur Thapa, Chairman of the Education and Health Committee, and formally presented its demands regarding the School Education Bill.

According to the committee, the inclusion of madrasas as an alternative educational stream and keeping the Muslim community in the inclusive policy are positive aspects. However, there are complaints that the bill does not clearly address important issues related to the management, investment and teacher structure of religious schools under public educational trusts.

The committee has demanded that the bill include a provision in which the state bears the expenses, considering schools such as madrasas, gurukuls and monasteries as public schools. In addition, it demands that the posts, stability and service facilities of teachers working in such educational institutions be ensured. In particular, it has been proposed to give permanent status to currently working relief teachers and that teachers of Arabic, Urdu, and religious subjects should be from the Muslim community.      

The committee demands that there should be a clear provision that allows Arabic and Urdu to be used as mediums of instruction for teaching religious subjects in madrasas. In addition, it has been mentioned that a provision should be included to teach additional religious or cultural subjects as non-credit subjects.

The memorandum also demands that the participation of stakeholders from the community should be ensured in the formation of the Madrasa Management Committee, that the principal should be a person from the Muslim community, and that the provision that the property of a Madrasa should be used by a nearby Madrasa if it is closed for any reason should be made clear in the bill.

The National Muslim Coordination Committee has also demanded the formation of a separate Traditional Education Board for the proper management, conduct of examinations, certification and quality assurance of Madrasa, Gurukul and Gumba education. The committee says that the board should have a provision to handle the educational structure up to the secondary level.

Leaders of various political parties, Muslim community leaders and representatives of organizations were present during the submission of the memorandum. Committee coordinator Mohammad Nizamuddin submitted the memorandum to the chairmen. State Affairs Committee Chairman Ramhari Khatiwada has expressed his commitment to consider the possibility of necessary amendments to the bill after further discussions with the stakeholders.