All government-run madrassas in Assam will be abolished and over 620 such institutions will be converted into schools from 1 April. A law to the effect that was passed by the Assembly on 30 December, and has now received Governor Jagdish Mukhi's assent as per News18.

Assam Education and Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced the decision on Wednesday, calling it a 'historic and progressive'.

Historic & Progressive!

Glad that The Assam Repealing Act 2020 has recieved the assent of Hon Governor & has come into effect. Madrassa Edu Provincialisation Act, 1995 and Assam Madrassa Education Act, 2018 stand repealed. All govt Madrassas will run as general education inst. pic.twitter.com/0zGqNTEGTh

— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) February 3, 2021

The Assam Repealing Act 2020 abolished the two existing Acts — The Assam Madrassa Education (Provincialisation) Act, 1995, and The Assam Madrassa Education (Provincialisation of Services of Employees and Re-Organisation of Madrassa Educational Institutions) Act, 2018.

However, a decision on the hundreds of privately-run madrassas across the state is yet to be taken, reports Times Now.

Earlier Sarma had said that the bill will not control and repeal the private madrassas and that the inclusion of the word "private" in the 'statement of objects and reasons' of the bill was a mistake.

The minister said in the bill that all madrassa institutes will be converted into upper primary, high, and higher secondary schools with no change of status, pay, allowances, and service conditions of the teaching and non-teaching staff.

Opposition parties, including the Congress and the All India United Democratic Front, had protested against the passage of the Bill in the Assembly.

Sarma had earlier also tried to alleviate fears of stopping the teaching of the Arabic language, and said that the teaching of the particular language will continue once the madrassas will be converted into general schools.

"Many Islamic scholars have opposed government support to teach the Quran. It was a wrong practice and we want to end this wrong practice," he added.

With inputs from PTI