Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Feb 18: A day after the Government of Maharashtra ordered a stay on minority status granted to 75 schools between January 28 and January 30, a senior official of the Minority Development Department who digitally signed the certificates has been transferred.
According to a Government Order issued by the General Administration Department, Milind Padmanabh Shenoy, Deputy Secretary, Minority Development Department, has been shifted on administrative grounds with immediate effect and directed to await further posting.
The approvals were issued in the three days immediately following the death of former Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on January 28. Pawar had been handling the Minority Development portfolio at the time of his demise.
An official list of certificates indicates that all 75 minority status approvals during the three-day period were digitally signed at the Mantralaya level by the same deputy secretary. Documents show that seven institutions were granted minority status on January 28 alone, with the first clearance recorded at 3.09 pm. The number rose to 75 within the next three days, with a significant cluster of approvals on January 29.
The approvals were granted under Article 30(1) of the Constitution and Section 2(g) of the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions Act, 2004.
The institutions covered at least 14 districts, including Mumbai, Pune, Thane, Yavatmal, Nagpur, Chandrapur, Buldhana, Latur, Nashik, Sangli and Raigad. In several cases, multiple schools under a single trust were granted minority status through a single certificate, with batches of clearances issued on January 29 and 30, suggesting that files were processed within a compressed timeframe.
Among the 75 institutions were 25 run by the Podar International School group, all of which received minority status certificates on January 29. Five schools of the St Xavier's group and four institutions linked to Swami Shanti Prakash and Devprakash trusts were also cleared during the same period.
Under the normal procedure, applications for minority status require scrutiny of trust documents, verification of minority character, examination under the 2013 government resolution governing minority institutions, and administrative approval before certificates are issued.
It remains unclear how many applications were pending prior to January 28 and whether the approvals represented routine disposal of backlog cases or a fresh round of clearances.
Following the controversy, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis ordered that the approvals be kept in abeyance pending review. Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar has also directed a detailed inquiry into the process adopted.
The government has not yet disclosed the composition of the inquiry panel or its terms of reference, nor clarified whether any departmental action has been initiated against officials involved in processing the files.
Minority status grants constitutional protections and exemptions from certain provisions of the Right to Education Act, including the 25 per cent reservation for economically weaker sections, making such approvals administratively significant.
Responding to the developments, Heer Kundanani, Principal of Swami Devprakash School in Ulhasnagar, stated that the institution had long held minority status and that the recent application was part of an online documentation process.
“Our school was established in 1996 and we received minority status in 2009. In 2024, we applied again through the online process as required by the authorities to maintain digital records. The process was delayed due to technical glitches. We received the hard copy of the certificate on January 22, while the soft copy was issued later,” she said.
The Podar International School management, in a statement, said: “As the matter is under investigation, we cannot comment further. The school will continue to adhere to all guidelines and policies as directed by the Government.”