RTE Act can be beneficial in spreading education throughout the country. However, once this Act alongwith corresponding governmental directives is completely implemented across the country, our educational excellence will get damaged in the worst manner. The reasons would be:
A)
1) In coming years, students will have a formal appearance in any examination for the first time to pass the +2 Examination. There won’t be any evaluation or test of such level before +2 Examination that could determine his/her failure. Every student will have the right to get promoted irrespective of their performance every year till he/she reaches Class 12th.
2) Under the purview of this Act, a teacher cannot pursue a student for being absent from the class, for not doing homework or for participating in any non-educational activities; and if he does so, the student can show his teacher the way to jail under RTE Act!
3) In RTE Act, for a neighborhood school, there is a legal provision of admitting 25% students from neighboring area. There is no apparent clarification of either a neighborhood school or neighboring area.
If 25% students under such category are compulsorily allowed admission into our institutions of excellence like Navodaya Vidyalaya, Central School, Army School and other such schools of state or central government or similar non-governmental schools (having proven track record of educational excellence) for which one has to go through tough competitive examinations, it will deteriorate the performing excellence of existing 75% also and these 25% will adversely affect entire educational environment of the school.
B) This RTE Act contradicts with Article 30, the fundamental right of minority educational institutions and seizes the right of minorities to establish and run institutions of their choice. The HRD ministry released a Guideline on RTE Act in the month of November 2010 and announced that the fundamental right given to the minorities has been safeguarded. Nevertheless, there is direct contradiction between Article (instruction) 4 and 5 of the given Guideline. Article 4 states that minority institutions come under RTE Act. In Article 5, the authorities have been given instructions to protect the fundamental right of such institutions which are running under Article 30 of the Constitution of India. Once they fall under RTE Act, the administration, managing committee, students’ admission & assessment, teachers’ selection, employment & dismissal – everything will be carried out as per RTE Act. Hence, Article 5 of the Guideline is insignificant and local authorities will interpret the Act on their own way and avail a legal chance to harass the minorities.
C) The Guideline gives an assurance to protect Madrasas, which is not satisfactory. Mr. Kapil Sibal has announced that Islamic Madrasas do not come under RTE Act – perhaps he himself has fallen prey to a misunderstanding.
In reality, RTE Act is meant for those children of ages 6 to 14 years who are studying or want to study in schools – and studying the syllabus selected and prepared by the government is their right. In such a condition, if any planted student of a Madrasa writes an application mentioning that he is not getting elementary education in that Madrasa as he is supposed to get as per RTE Act, then it will lead the teachers and the administration of that Madrasa to prison and Madrasa will have to pay the fine.
The assurance given by the cabinet minister (be it in the form of article published in a newspaper or his statement in the parliament) has no legal validity until it becomes the part of the RTE Act. The Madrasas and other institutions running under Article 30 of the Constitution of India must get protection in the RTE Act in a comprehensible manner – this is an obligation towards justice and the Constitution of India.
Courtesy: an Urdu Press Release by Hazrat Maulana Mohammad Wali Rahmani, Khanqah Rahmani, Munger (Formerly Dy. Chairman, Bihar Legislative Council)
