DCs, SSPs to ensure students don’t suffer
Fayaz Bukhari
Srinagar, Aug 22: Government today ordered the takeover of 215 schools affiliated, directly or indirectly, with the banned organisation Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) and its affiliate Falah-e-Aam Trust (FAT).
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These schools are likely to be taken over by the Government tomorrow for which all arrangements have been made.
An order issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India vide Notification S.O.1069(E) dated 28th February 2019 and further vide Notification S.O. 924(E) dated 27th February 2024, issued under sub- section (1) of section (3) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (37 of 1967) declared the Jamaat-e-Islami (Jel), Jammu and Kashmir as an unlawful association.
“The Intelligence Agencies have identified a number of schools which were found to be directly or indirectly affiliated with proscribed organisation Jamat-e-Islami (Jel)/Falah-e-Aam Trust (FAT),” the order read.
The validity of the Managing Committee of 215 such schools has expired and have been reported adversely upon by the Intelligence Agencies, the order read.
“Now therefore, in view of the above and in order to safeguard the academic future of the students enrolled in these schools in exercise of the powers conferred by the Government of Jammu and Kashmir through The Jammu and Kashmir School Education Rules 2010 notified vide SRO 123 of 2010 read with SRO 292 of 2018 and SO 177 of 2022, it is hereby ordered that the Managing Committee of the 215 schools shall be taken over by the District Magistrate/ Deputy Commissioner concerned who shall propose a fresh Managing Committee in due course for the concerned schools after getting these duly verified”.
The Concerned District Magistrate and Deputy Commissioner, on taking over these schools, shall take appropriate steps in consultation and in coordination with the School Education Department so that to ensure that the academic career of the students enrolled in these schools is not affected in any manner, the order said further.
“He shall also take all necessary measures to ensure quality education as per NEP norms in these schools.”
The schools that are being taken over include 37 schools in district Anantnag, six in Bandipora, 53 in Baramulla, 20 in Budgam, six in Ganderbal, 16 in Kulgam, 36 in Kupwara, 21 in Pulwama, 15 in Shopian and 4 in Srinagar.
The process of scrutiny of Falah-e-Aam Trust (FAT), set up by the Jamaat in 1972, was started in 2022. There are around 60,000 students enrolled and nearly 4,000 teaching and non-teaching staff working in these schools, some of them in Jammu region.
The FAT schools were taken over by the Jammu and Kashmir Government after it notified it as an ‘unlawful association’ on May 11, 1990, under the J&K Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1983.
In a letter to the Additional Secretary of J&K’s School Education Department on June 16, 2022, the J&K Board of School Education (BOSE), which is the managing body for private and public schools in the Union Territory, said that 10 schools run by the FAT in Srinagar, Kupwara, Baramulla, Anantnag and Ganderbal districts of Kashmir have been merged with the Government-run schools over the last 30 years.
“The rest of the schools have either shut down completely or changed their ownership and management. They are now run by elders and respectable citizens of their community with the FAT only acting in supervisory role in some cases.”
Over the years, these schools fell into the hands of the community-run managing bodies, some activists and members of Jamaat, which was banned in February 2019. It is these schools that are not being taken over by the Government.
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