In a significant step to end the uncertainty that thousands of madrasa students are facing in the state, the Uttar Pradesh government is preparing a roadmap to facilitate the affiliation of Kamil (graduate-level) and Fazil (postgraduate-level) courses with the Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti (KMC) Language University, Lucknow.
The move comes after the Uttar Pradesh Cabinet recently approved amendments to the UP Board of Madarsa Education Act, 2004, stripping the Madarsa Education Board of powers to regulate or award higher education degrees. Officials from the minority welfare department confirmed that the state is actively working on a framework under which these courses will be governed by a recognised university system.
Danish Azad Ansari, minister of state for minority welfare, said, “The Supreme Court made it clear that Kamil and Fazil, being higher education courses, cannot remain under the Madarsa Board. The necessary amendments have now been approved in accordance with the judgment.”
He further said the government is examining all legal aspects to protect students’ interests and assured that teachers employed in aided madrasas based on these degrees would not be affected.
“We are preparing a roadmap for the affiliation of Kamil and Fazil courses for the madrasa students in the state. The government is very much serious about the education of madrasa students and wants them to get the best available education,” Ansari added.
{{/usCountry}}“We are preparing a roadmap for the affiliation of Kamil and Fazil courses for the madrasa students in the state. The government is very much serious about the education of madrasa students and wants them to get the best available education,” Ansari added.
{{/usCountry}}The issue traces back to the Supreme Court’s November 5, 2024 judgment in the Anjum Kadari case. While upholding the constitutional validity of the UP Madarsa Education Act, the apex court ruled that provisions allowing the Board to award Kamil and Fazil degrees were unconstitutional. It held that only universities regulated under the University Grants Commission (UGC) Act could confer graduate and postgraduate degrees.
Following the verdict, the Madarsa Board issued directives in January 2025 halting new admissions and classes for these courses. This left approximately 28,000 students enrolled in the three-year Kamil programme and about 9,000 in the two-year Fazil course — totalling nearly 37,000 students — in limbo across the state’s recognised madrasas.
Kamil had traditionally been treated as equivalent to a bachelor’s degree and Fazil to a master’s, focusing on Arabic, Persian, Islamic theology, jurisprudence, Hadith and related subjects. However, these qualifications lacked formal UGC recognition when awarded by the Board, limiting their utility outside madrasa teaching roles.
Prof Ajay Taneja, vice chancellor of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti Language University, said, “We have not yet received any formal communication from the government regarding the issue. Once received, we will work out things accordingly.”
Meanwhile, officials of the minority welfare department maintain that detailed affiliation rules are still being framed, but the government’s intent is clear: to align madrasa higher education with national standards while safeguarding the academic future of affected students. Further announcements on the operational mechanism are expected in the coming weeks.