Catholic Church in Western India Challenges Minority Educational Rights Legislation| National Catholic Register

GUJARAT, India — The Catholic Church in Gujarat, the westernmost coastal state in India, has demanded that the state’s highest court quash new legislation that cancels the fundamental right of minority-run educational institutions to make their appointments in schools without interference by the government. The legislation “ flatly denies our right to make appointments in our institutions and discipline the staff in case of misconduct. It encroaches the fundamental right guaranteed under the Indian Constitution,” Father Teles Fernandes, secretary of the Catholic education network of the state, told the Register on June 15. Article 30(1) under the Fundamental Rights in the Indian Constitution says, “All minorities, whether based on religion or language, shall have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.”  The amendment to the Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Act, 2021, which took effect June 1, denies Christian and other minority-run educational institutions the ability to appoint non-teaching employees, faculty and administration. According to the new law, all such institutions that receive state financial aid can only hire employees through a government-approved process.

Catholic Church in Western India Challenges Minority Educational Rights Legislation| National Catholic Register