The Muslim clerics in the state, are considering plans to temporarily suspend the admission process for one or months and offer the madrassas to the government for using them as quarantine centres. The decision comes after the imam of a mosque in Matiabruz offered the premises to the local authorities for using it as a quarantine centre.

The Muslim clerics, following the initiative, have called upon the madrassas in West Bengal to hold on the admission process a few months and enable usage of their premises as quarantine centres instead. The call to ‘perform the duty towards the motherland’ has come from Bengal Imams’ Association, an organisation including hundreds of imams from all over the state.

Urging the authorities of the madrassas, which are around 2000 in number, the religious heads have asked the institutions not to wait for the government to do everything but come forward to serve the people in such times of crisis as responsible citizens.

“Like the other schools and colleges of the state, the madrassas also are closed and no admission can be taken in the usual manner during the lockdown,” reads a letter issued by the members of the Bengal Imams’ Association to the madrassa authorities.

“The requirement of space for quarantine centres to be used for lakhs of people in the state is increasing every day,” said Md Yahya, chairman of the association.

“Thousands of stranded people are returning to the state in special trains. We might not be able to provide help to thousands of people but we can help our neighbours and other people of the locality at least. We therefore have urged our members to offer the mosques and madrassas for using them as quarantine centres to the government authorities.

“Several members have welcomed the idea and are ready to let the religious premises be used for serving the people,” he added. Notably, following the appeal by the clerics, the authorities of Mardassa ‘Tajwid-ul Quran,’ at Rejinagar in Murshidabad have decided to offer the institutional premises to the state authorities.

“Our madrassa has vast premises of one storey building of 150 feet length and 18 rooms,” informed Moulana Eid Mohammad, head of the institution. “I will be very happy if the building is used by the state authorities as a quarantine centre,” he added.