PM Narendra Modi launches book on Muslim education

Speaking at a book release function in Delhi on June 15, Prime Minister, Narendra Modi described “knowledge” or “ilm”, as it is called in Urdu, as the focal point of all religions. The book “Education of Muslims: An Islamic Perspective of Knowledge and Education – Indian Context” was released by Modi in the presence of a select audience of scholars, historians and diplomatic Representatives.

The audience also included high commissioners of SAARC countries and envoys of Muslim nations like Qatar, Bahrain, Egypt and Indonesia.

While complimenting the editor and foreword writer of the book, Dr. JS Rajput and Sirajuddin Qureshi respectively, PM Narendra Modi held that education could become the strength of the entire SAARC region to embrace modernity and progresses.

He was of the view that vast diversity of India was a fortune for us to afford an ‘opportunity to follow, understand and learn so many different religions, and strands of thought, at one place’. He wished that the book would be helpful to us in our efforts towards understanding one another and different points of view.

Rajput is an educationist, author, former director of NCERT and former chairman of NCTE. However, his appointment as director of NCERT in July 1999 by Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, then minister of human resource development in the BJP-led NDA government, created controversy and was seen as a move to saffronize the school education by many.

Sirajuddin Qureshi is a president of Indian Islamic Culture Center and MD of Hind groups of Company, who backs the development agenda of the present government.