Uttar Pradesh minority commission urges Deoband: Don't stop students from learning English

The Uttar Pradesh Minorities Commission on Wednesday directed the Darul UIoom Deoband not to prevent its students from learning English or any other subjects, saying people have a right to education of their choice as they have learned.

The row erupted after a Saharanpur-based Islamic seminary in a recent circular allegedly asked its students not to learn English or face expulsion from the campus. This led to the commission summoning Deoband officials and asking the district magistrate to remain present with the inquiry report during the hearing of the case.

Commission Chairman Ashfaq Saifi, in his verdict, said: "One has the right to education of one's choice... English is the official language of many states and proceedings of the Hon'ble Supreme Court are also done in English... Therefore it is not right to prevent students madrasas in the study of English and other subjects... it is expected that the management of Darul Uloom Deoband will not prevent students from seeking education in English and other subjects.”

On behalf of Deoband, its representatives Maulana Hussain Ahmed Haridwari and Nazim Majlis Talimi appeared before the commission chairman.

It may be noted that Deoband issued a clarification on its circular on June 15 and said that no restrictions are imposed on students who want to learn English, Hindi, Mathematics and other subjects.

The clarification added that students will not be allowed to seek a degree from other institutions while still studying at Deoband. However, they could choose to study at any institution after completing the course in Deoband, it said, attributing the "misunderstanding" in its June 13 circular to a clerical error.