The Director General of Police Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta said on Monday, January 16, said that the Government of Assam has decided to merge small madrasas with bigger madrasas to reduce the threat of radicalism. The government is surveying to create a database of such educational institutions in the state.
At a press conference, DGP Mahanta said that Assam is a "natural target" for radicalisation because of its sizable population of Muslims and such activities are usually undertaken in small madrasas. The state police have busted nine modules of terror outfits Ansarul Bangla Team (ABT) and Al Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and arrested 53 suspected terrorists last year, he added.
He also said that, "We have nipped the menace in the bud but the concern is there. The police are always alert and coordinate with states like West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh (in this connection),” stated a report by PTI.
After the banning of the outfits in Bangaladesh, some of their top leaders were hanged following court orders in the neighbouring country, they shifted their base to Uttar Pradesh and their target is to trap vulnerable youth by radicalising them, the DGP said. He also said, "Assam has been their target and some activists from Bangladesh, who are now absconding, had earlier visited the state as teachers in small and newly set up Madrasas in a bid to radicalise the youth."
At a meeting with 68 community leaders, it was decided to implement educational reforms in madrasas, according to Mahanta, who said that Muslim leaders were the ones who approached the authorities to report these activities.
Within a radius of three kilometres, there will only be one madrasa and those with 50 students or fewer will be merged with larger ones nearby, he said.
Along with teaching Arabic, the updated curriculum will adhere to contemporary teaching methods and place a strong emphasis on skill development. It was decided to form a board with representatives from each of the state's four streams of Islamic studies as reported by PTI.
A survey is being conducted to create a database of all madrasas that will include information about the land, the number of teachers and students, and the curriculum. According to the DGP, it should be ready by January 25.
All teachers will have to undergo police verification and Islamic leaders will also be on the lookout for teachers travelling from outside the country.
“Superintendents of Police have been directed to keep a strict vigil, particularly in the minority-dominated Lower Assam districts, and the three districts of Barak Valley,'' Mahanta said. Along with detaining 53 suspected terrorists, the state authorities demolished private madrasas last year where instructors with militant ties allegedly radicalised children, stated the PTI report.
