New Delhi: The Uttar Pradesh government has taken a major decision regarding madrasas. The Yogi government has decided to withdraw the ‘UP Madrasa Bill 2016 ‘, which had been passed by both houses of the state legislature during the tenure of the SP government, thereby completely scrapping the bill that had been pending for nearly a decade.
Although the SP government had successfully passed the bill in both houses, it could not be implemented due to constitutional hurdles. The Governor and the Central Government had raised certain objections that the SP government failed to address. Now, the Yogi government has officially scrapped it, a move seen as a major blow to the hopes of teachers employed in madrasas.
Yogi Government Scraps Madrasa Bill
The bill was introduced and passed during the SP government’s tenure in 2016 with the aim of ensuring timely salary payments for teachers and other staff working in madrasas. The then UP government had argued that the bill would guarantee regular salaries for madrasa staff and establish accountability for payment delays.
Furthermore, the bill stipulated that criminal cases would be registered against officials held responsible for failing to ensure timely salary payments to madrasa teachers and staff. These provisions raised legal and constitutional questions regarding the bill passed by the SP government; both the Governor and the Central Government had deemed such a bill unlawful.
SP’s Bill Failed to Get Governor’s Assent
Relying on its majority, the SP government had managed to pass the bill in both houses. However, one crucial step remained: the assent of the then Governor, Ram Naik. When the bill was presented to him, he expressed disagreement with certain provisions and refused to grant his approval.
Consequently, the bill was referred to the President for consideration. Under constitutional provisions, the President’s assent is mandatory in such matters, particularly when a bill involves constitutional or legal complexities. Once the bill reached the President, it also underwent scrutiny by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. Objections were raised regarding several provisions of the bill during its review.
Yogi Government Scraps Long-Pending Bill
The Yogi Adityanath government has withdrawn the Madrasa Bill, which had been pending for nearly a decade. It has been formally withdrawn from both houses of the legislature. The state government holds the view that there is no point in keeping a bill pending if it never received constitutional approval and was never implemented.
With its withdrawal from both houses, the legislative process for this bill has come to a complete end. The provision that garnered the most discussion was the one mandating criminal action against concerned officials in the event of delays in salary payments. Legal experts believed that such a provision raised several administrative and constitutional questions.
