No plan to close Madaris: Sherpao

ISLAMABAD—Federal Minister for Interior Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao has said that the government has no intention to close down seminaries adding that about twelve thousands madrassah are playing key role in the country's education.
He expressed these views during a programme of the state-run television here on Wednesday.
He said the government wanted the seminaries to teach worldly subjects simultaneously with the religious ones to enable the students get jobs in practical life. While the government, he said, wanted the seminaries not to impart education of extremism, hate and sectarianism to avoid sectarian and terrorist incidents in the country.
"Extremism is on rise in the country that has endangered the entire world".
Sherpao said that the government had banned hate literature that could lead people to hatred, extremism and sectarianism. "The government wants the seminaries to prepare a syllabus creating harmony among the masses," he added.
He said the accused of the last year 7/7 bombings in UK were not trained in Pakistan. The government wanted to safeguard the country from any such allegations and nobody could raise finger on our seminaries. He rejected the impression that terrorists are trained in madrassah.
The federal minister said that the United States had no objection regarding the seminaries and we take every decision by ourselves.
Sherpao said anybody had neither asked Pakistan for closer of the seminaries nor the government had such intention. "The seminaries will continue its function," Sherpao added.
In this connection, he said, President Pervez Musharraf had firmly presented his stance in all countries including America. "About 95 per cent seminaries have been registered that are playing key role in the country," he added.
The federal minister said that about 700 foreign students who had been issued NOCs by their native countries were currently getting religious education in Pakistan and those who do not have the NOCs would soon be repatriated to their countries.
He said the Afghan students were exempted from the NOC condition. "The Afghan students have come to Pakistan through visas and they do not need to have an NOC," he added.—Agencies