HAMIRPUR/NEW DELHI – In yet another blow to the Muslim community, the district administration of Hamirpur sealed a madrasa on the orders of District Magistrate Ghanshyam Meena, citing lack of recognition papers. The move comes as part of a wider campaign against what the state calls “illegal madrasas” in Uttar Pradesh.
The madrasa, named after the Sufi saint Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani, had been operating in the Maudha Kotwali area. According to officials, when the investigation team asked for recognition documents, the management could not produce them within the deadline. Following this, the madrasa was sealed.
District officials said that rules do not allow any educational institution to run without valid recognition. “This is a violation of government guidelines. We cannot allow such institutions to function,” a senior officer stated.
But Muslim leaders and local residents argue that the crackdown is being carried out selectively against their institutions. Many say this action is less about rules and more about targeting a community.
Mohammad Irfan, a local resident, said: “Our children were learning here peacefully. Education is being snatched away from poor Muslim children in the name of documents. Why are only our madrasas being sealed?”
Another parent, Shabana Begum, whose son studied at the madrasa, expressed her pain: “We trusted this madrasa to teach our children both religion and basic education. Now the doors are closed. Where will our children go?”
Community leaders say the government is punishing Muslims for their faith. “They are bulldozing mosques, demolishing dargahs, and sealing madrasas. This is an attempt to erase Muslim identity and push us further into poverty,” said Maulana Rahmat Ali, imam at a nearby mosque.
The figures support the scale of the crackdown. In just one year, authorities claim to have demolished 429 religious structures along the UP-Nepal border, including mosques, madrasas, and dargahs. At least 57 madrasas were sealed in Shravasti, 28 in Maharajganj, 42 in Farrukhabad, and five in Bahraich. In Balrampur, five were demolished and 22 sealed, while in Siddharthnagar 18 faced action, with nine removed entirely.
This story was originally published in clarionindia.net. Read the full story here.
