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Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru

Mangaluru, Feb 10: Yuva Brigade leader and orator Chakravarty Sulibele on Wednesday February 10 opined that Madrasas need to adopt modern education and modern thought so that more number of Muslims can join the mainstream society.

He was speaking at a symposium on 'Madrasa system in secular society' organized by Sunni Jamiyyatul Muslimeen (SJM) in association with Sunni Educational Development Committee (SEDC) at Town Hall here.

"To the world, the Muslim community is homogenous - people think a person who sports a beard and wears a skullcap is a Muslim. Most people do not know that the Muslim community is heterogenous. In Dakshina Kannada, the community is rich and thriving, but if you go to Bengaluru, you will see Muslim boys working in garages and scrap shops. They are impoverished. As per a survey, the income of Muslims is very low and reason given is that in most Muslim homes, there are at least three children who cannot afford school and end up in garages and scrap shops. Between the 1960s and 2001, the world Muslim population grew by 200 percent, but this is not population grown is not strengthening the community - it is instead increasing the poverty in the community. A Muslim friend of mine had expressed lament over the fact that whenever a crime takes places and there is no Muslim involved among the accused, he breathes a sigh of relief. This (poverty and crime) is happening due to lack of education.

"The British had suppressed the Hindus too, but due to education, the community developed at a much faster rate. Muslims go to Madrasas, and very few, comparitively, are in schools. When everyone is joining the mainstream education, the Muslims are left behind. It is our responsibility too to ensure that Muslims join the mainstream.

Tracing the history of Madrasas, he said they started during the time of Prophet Mohammed in Basra and Baghdad. "From 8th to 10th century AD, there was a movement to make Madrasa education more scientific and rational, but after the 10th century, it became rigid again. Madrasas teach science in relation to Islam, but the fact is that science is not restricted to any religion. During Akbar's reign, Madrasa education became a little modern, but again, Aurangazeb stopped such modernization. Medieval thinking still continues in Madrasa education. There should be reasoning power.

"The British brought a positive change by introducing English education in India, but they targeted both Hindu and Muslim centres of education. I have spoken so much in praise of leaders like Moulvi Ahmed Shah, Barkatulla Khan, and still I am called communal. These and other Muslim leaders came to streets because the British tried to end the Madrasa system. The Deoband Madrasa started after that in UP. It is a very rigid.

"During partition Mohammed Ali Jinnah took Muslims to Pakistan, but leaders in India said Muslims of India need not go there and promised them protection, but unfortunately some of them built regressive Madrasas and are working against the country. Can we tolerate that? There are some Azad Madrasas that no one has control over - there is nobody to set them right. This is not just about a 1,000 madrasas - but about 1 lac across the country. They should be brought in line. Prime Minister Narendra Modi took a commendable step by announcing funds to modernise Madrasas," he said.

"Nobody is against imparing religious education, but alongside, there shoul be modern education too. Why many Muslims in Karnataka are not able to speak Kannada? It is because local languages are not taught in Madrasas, which is in turn leading to unemployment. All Madrasas teach subjects that are religion centric. It is not a problem but only religion is not enough for survival.

"What is the ultimate goal of Madrasas? What do they want to make of younsgters? There is no proper goal. What is the need of teaching only religion eight hours a day? In fact, the curriculum of Madrasas is such that even educated Muslims do not accept it. Muslim universities themselves do not accept Madrasa education. Only Islamic literature and philosphy is accepted in Aligarh University. In such a scenario, how will they go join the mainstream?" he added.

"Moreover, the facilities in Madrasas are very poor. They are not like schools and there is nothing to attract students. The Madrasa is disconnected from modern development. There is no modern or scientific thought emerging from Madrasas. Not a single person who has had Madrasa education has turned out to be a scientist or mathematician or worked in ISRO.

"Job opportunities too are limited. You can become a maulvi and imam, which is not at all bad, but what is the salary you will get? This creates disparity. How many rank holders has the Muslim community produced in PUC? On the other hand, the highest dropouts are from the Muslim community, because there is no environment of modern education in homes. We need to build a productive society in order to build a strong nation. When I asked someone in Delhi about the scope of employment in Madrasa education, he said there was lot of scope in Arabic-English translation. Such view is limited. Bring them to mainstream. Modi had said along with the Quran, there should be computer studies too, which is a very good thought. Madrasa education should be on par with the mainstream education. People do not know that Muslim community is heterogenous. Bring down Madrasa education to 1.5 hours a day and come out from medieval thought. I have read the Quran in Indian languages translated and published by Shanti Prakashan. We need to build a good and strong society for our future generation," he said.

"People think I am not in contact with Muslims and do not know anything about them. But that is not so. I keep my religion inside my house, and once I step outside, I am an Indian. I am not interested in politics and I will never go to anyone asking for votes. My only intention is that everyone should live together in peace. Today, 20 percent of the population in India is Muslim. It is not possible for 20 percent to kill the other 80 percent, nor is it possible for the 80 percent to kill the 20 percent. The only way is for everyone to walk together with unity. It is easy to become an island, but very difficult to build a bridge. Let us strive to become bridges that connect different islands of the society. Let this programme inspire all," Sulibele said.

Fr John Baptist Saldanha, chairman of the chair in Christianity, Mangalore University said, "Today is an auspicious occasion as it is Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent season. My interaction with Muslims goes back to school when I had Muslim and Hindu friends sitting on either sides. I am someone who has learnt about Islam, assimilated its teachings, and visited Madrasas.

"When we speak about Madrasa, we speak about an educational institution which is not restricted to any one religion. It is for all. Even Christian children should be allowed to go to Madrasa to learn about Islam, and similarly Muslim children can learn about Christianity in seminaries. At a time when education has become a business, Madrasas are doing good work by providing education to the poor students and orphans from the community. There is no better place to study about Islam. Many of the Madrasas in Maharashtra, Bihar and other states have incorporated modern education and CBSE and state syllabus. We should remember that there is much diversity among Madrasas in different parts of India.

"But the question that arises is - Is Madrasa education a threat to peace and tolerance? I spoke to some people from my own community and I felt most of them know a lot about Madrasas. Some felt Madrasas divide the society by creating a feeling of 'them and us' among children. This should not happen. There should not be any fissure in society in the name of religion. Do not teach children to differentiate others on the basis of religion, instead, inspire them to become good citizens of the country. Education should not be restricted to religion. Madrasas and seminaries are centres of enlightment, hence they should teach about social tolerance and issues related to the country.

"There is no problem about registered Madrasas, the problem is with illegal Madrasas which receive foreign funds. We hear of allegations that they are working against the interest of the counrty. It is our duty to set this right. Why are values of tolerance and brotherhood not taught in most Madrasas? There should be modern thought incorporated with religious education," he opined.

Maulana N K M Shafi Sa'adi, member of Karnataka State Wakf Board said, "Madrasa education should be imparted in local languages. There are different kinds of madrasas - in north India and Bengaluru, Madrasas impart higher education and in DK, chidren go to Madrasa to seek primary education.

"Population of a community is not a big issue, be it Hindu, Muslim or Christianity. This has been made an issue by those who have vested political interests. Even economist Amartya Sen had said human resouce is an asset. The problem is we have failed to utilize this resource.

"We have failed in propogating our religion in the right manner and spreading the actual message of Quran. The Quran has been misintepretated, as while translating into English and other languages, only the literal meaning is taken. Terrorist organizations like ISIS have no religion. They are against Islam. Principles of patriotism are taught in Madrasas and people who seek education in Madrasas can never be traitors," he said.

Health minister U T Khader called upon everyone to live in peace and unity and build a strong society. "More than 90 percent of the people want to live in peace. There are four main problems today - one, those who have no knowledge of religion or family values indulge in anti-social activities; two, trivial matters are made big issues and politicized; three, there is a trust deficit between people of different communities; and the fourth problem is that educated people who want to live in peace and who respect each other's religions and cultures are silent. These problems can be resolved by holding peace meets and inter-religious dialogues such as these."

"We are children of the same motherland. Every person has two goals - that is to achieve success in this life and secondly, go to heaven. You cannot go to heaven if you bring tears to anyone's eyes, hurt your parents and elders, or hurt another individual. Why are we differentiating people based on colours such green and saffron? They are just colours and have nothing to do with anyone's identity. We should let bygones be bygones and think about the future, only then we will progress. Today no one has patience - everyone wants instant money, instant food, everything instant and in unlimited amounts. In such a scenario, religious education is very important to achieve balance in life as well as in society and Madrasas are doing good work in this regard. Anyone who incorporates Madrasa education in life will never walk in the wrong path. Of course there is a 2 percent population that has gone astray, and it is our responsibility to set them right. We should all work together, understand each other and build a peaceful society," he added.

Former mayor K Ashraf and many others were present.