ISLAMABAD June 20: Setting the terms for maintaining, opening, functioning and the mode of education for the religious schools, federal minister for religious affairs Dr Mehmud Ahmed Ghazi declared here on Thursday that no religious school would be allowed to impart education of sectarian hatred or militancy in future.

Speaking at a news conference, he said the Madrassah Registration Ordinance 2002 approved by the cabinet on Wednesday would be remodified and presented to the president before its enforcement/implementation.

The government, he said, had drawn up a three-year Madrassah project at a cost of Rs13,691 million, out of which needy religious schools would be provided financial as well as technical assistance in adopting to the proposed four general subjects without any change in religious education syllabus.

The regularization of religious education system, he asserted, was long drawn conclusion of the government since 80s and it had no nexus with Sept 11 attacks on the United States nor was it being funded by the foreign aid.

A Federal Madrassah Education Board (FMEB), with two women as its members, had been set up in the federal capital and all the provinces would also set up the Provincial Madrassah Education Boards (PMEB) as well.

He denied misgivings about the government’s intention to bring the Ulema graduating from future religious schools under official control, and said, “Time will tell that there is no such intention.” He assured non-interference in administrative and educative affairs of the registered Madaris.

Under the ordinance, anyone found involved in imparting training of militancy in any religious institution would be liable to punishment of two years rigorous imprisonment, he remarked.

There would be no curb on getting foreign aid by any religious school provided such aid was brought to the notice of the Madrassah Education Boards (MEBs), he said.

Replying to a question about the status of the on-going freedom struggle in Kashmir, the minister said: “It was internally (a homogeneous) Islamic Jehad since there was no Islamic government but it (Jehad) cannot be condoned anywhere else unless it was declared and controlled by an Islamic government, and it would be Fasad and not Jehad if it was without government’s permission,” he asserted.

After the promulgation of the ordinance, Ghazi maintained, every Madrassah would be bound to register itself with the FMEB or the PMEB within six months unless a grace period was allowed by the concerned board. Similarly, he added, all intending new religious schools would be permitted by concerned district Nazmeen who would record their precise reasons for not allowing any institution against which an appeal would be permitted.

The minister for religious affairs claimed that all the Ulema of five known religious institutional organisations in the country had repeatedly been consulted and their consent solicited before proposing the registration of religious schools.

He said the registration would not alter with the independent status of these institutions and there would be no curb on the Ulema graduated from there to adopt to their own way of life.

Under the law, he said, all admissions of foreign students would be regularised and visa would only be issued to any student after getting clearance of interior and education ministries. Similarly, no foreign teacher would be allowed to teach unless his entry was regularised in accordance with the law.

Any foreign government grants to any religious institutions, he observed, would be allowed by the respective Madrassah board after clearance from the interior ministry.