UP govt backtracks on madrasa dress code

The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday backtracked on the issue of dress code for 'madrasa' (Islamic seminaries) students after Muslim clerics termed it "unconstitutional" and vowed to oppose the same.

The government clarified that it had not taken any decision to implement "dress code" for madrasa students.

The clarification came in the wake of Minister of State for Minority Affairs Mohsin Raza's remarks on Tuesday that the students of the madrasas would also have to follow a "dress code".

Raza had said that the madrasa students wore 'kurta' and short 'pajamas', which was not proper as it made them look different from students of normal schools.

Raza's senior colleague Chaudhary Luxminarayan, who is the cabinet minister of the department, on Wednesday said that there was no such decision. "There is no such proposal before the government," he said.

Luxminarayan termed Raza's remarks as "personal".

Muslim clerics reacted sharply to Raza's remarks terming the same as "unconstitutional" and made it clear that they would not follow the directive if asked to implement.

"Does the government decide about the dresses of all the schools and colleges in the country....what the students should wear should be left to the managing committee of the madrasas....it is outside the jurisdiction of the government," said a senior Muslim cleric here on Wednesday.

Senior Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan also slammed the remarks saying that the government should also declare as to how it would punish those, who did not follow the order.