Government allowances for teachers at 601 madrasas in West Bengal have been halted since Suvendu Adhikari took office as chief minister, Indian broadcaster Aaj Tak reported.
The report said West Bengal has 601 unregistered madrasas, with about 84,000 students and roughly 6,000 teachers. During Mamata Banerjee’s tenure, the madrasas operated with some government financial support and other state assistance. That assistance has stopped under Adhikari, according to the report.
A delegation of teachers met Kamal Hossain, president of the minority front, after the allowances were cut. He assured them he would look into the matter.
Adhikari has also issued new rules on animal slaughter since taking office, the report said. Muslim residents are reportedly no longer buying cattle for Qurbani, leaving Hindu farmers — who had taken bank loans to raise the animals — unable to sell their livestock. The farmers have held protests demanding the right of Muslims to sacrifice cattle be restored.
The chief minister has also cut the Eid ul-Adha holiday in West Bengal from two days to one, according to a new notification.
The notification said the holiday dates have changed because Eid is timed to the sighting of the moon. The state government has reduced the previous two-day holiday to a single day, the chief minister announced.
When the Trinamool Congress was in power, the West Bengal government had declared a two-day public holiday for Qurbani Eid. The BJP won a single-party majority in the state assembly elections, taking 207 seats and forming a government in West Bengal for the first time. Adhikari became chief minister. The Trinamool Congress, the principal opposition, won 80 seats.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report