The Jamiat-e-Ulama Telangana Andhra Pradesh (Mahmood Madani group), a body of Muslim clerics, will deliberate on the possibility of entering into a dialogue with the administration given the recent spate of madrassa demolitions in Assam.
The Jamiat is of the view that while no such incident has taken place in Telangana, all efforts must be made to ensure that the trend does not reach the two Telugu states.
Speaking to The Hindu, Jamiat General Secretary Maulana Khaleeq Sabir raised concerns about the madrassa demolition in Assam and the planned survey. Discussions, he said, would revolve around the protection of madrassas and dispelling the disinformation about them.
“If we look at history, madrassas and those who studied in them, and taught in them, took part in the freedom struggle. This is an unalterable facet of history. We are seeing that concerted efforts are being made to disparage madrassas. Though no Assam-like incident has happened here, we do not want the trend to spread,” Maulana Sabir said.
The Jamiat estimates there are around 5,000 madrassas in the State.
“In the past, we have seen a tendency in the bureaucracy to seek details again and again about madrassas. If something like this happens in the future, it would be best to be prepared to tell them to talk to madrassas first, to understand that they are institutions of literacy, and ask them about the difficulties they are facing. For some years now, many madrassas have been even teaching English and Telugu as well,” he said.
In a statement issued to the media, Jamiat president and former member of the Legislative Council, Hafiz Peer Shabbir Ahmed was quoted as saying that madrassas provide education to the poorest of the poor. He expressed despair over the fact that those institutions were being viewed in with suspicion.
The Jamiat meeting for Telangana is likely to be organised on September 22.
