'Treat all equally': SC junks ruling against UP madrassas

CJI-led Bench says 2004 law doesn't violate principle of secularism

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The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday upheld the constitutional validity of a 2004 Uttar Pradesh law regulating madrassas, saying that the positive concept of secularism required the state to treat minority institutions on a par with secular ones and treat all equally irrespective of faith, belief.

A Bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra overturned the March 22 Allahabad High Court verdict quashing the 2004 law on the ground that it was violative of the principle of secularism. "We have upheld the validity of the UP madrassa law and moreover a statute can be struck down only if the State lacks the legislative competence," the CJI said while pronouncing the verdict.