West Bengal government issues closure notice to 252 unaided and unrecognised madrasas

The West Bengal government has issued closure notices to 252 unaided and unrecognised madrasas. Another hundred similar madrasas have received show-cause notices and may face closure if they fail to explain the irregularities and answer the queries.

“A survey was conducted through district administration across 22 districts and in Kolkata. Details of teachers, students, infrastructure and funds available was inspected by a special team on the basis of which 252 madrasahs have been closed in the first phase,” said Kshudiram Tudu , Minister for Minority Affairs and Madrasah Education.

Unrecognised and unaided madrasahs are commonly called Khariji Madrasahs; they are independent Islamic educational institutions that operate without government funding, formal recognition, or official regulatory control. Of the madrasas that have been given closure notice, 44 of these are located in Malda, 37 in Uttar Dinajpur, 32 in South 24 Parganas, and 25 each in Nadia and Murshidabad.