The state of Uttar Pradesh in India has stopped payments to over 21,000 teachers in madressahs who teach subjects like mathematics and science. This decision comes after the federal government ended a funding scheme, despite the fact that new proposals had already been halted four years earlier. The move has been criticized by Iftikhar Ahmed Javed, head of the state’s madressah education board, who believes it will set Muslim students and teachers back by 30 years.
This stop in funding has caused teachers to go six years without receiving the federal government’s share of scheme payments, prompting Javed to write a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking for the program’s revival. The BJP-led government has been accused of threatening and harassing religious minorities with impunity, and the recent funding halt could contribute to these tensions. Despite this backlash, some officials are working to retain the program in order to provide both Islamic and modern education to children.