Jamiat cites arbitrary appointment to NCMEI, SC notice to Centre

New Delhi, Jan 7 : The Supreme Court on Thursday sought response from the Centre on the Jamiat Ulema-I-Hind’s plea raising concerns over the “arbitrary” appointment of Chairperson and members of the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions (NCMEI).
After a hearing in the matter, a bench comprising Justices L Nageswara Rao, Navin Sinha and Indu Malhotra issued notice.
Jamiat Ulema-I-Hind, in the plea filed through advocate Wajeeh Shafiq, argued that the Chairperson and the members have been appointed in an arbitrary manner without inviting applications by issuing advertisements.
“It is relevant to mention here that out of three members, two members are from Sikh community whereas, no person from Christian community or amongst Sunni Muslims was appointed as member of the Commission,” it contended.
The NCMEIs consists a Chairperson and three members to be nominated by the Centre.
In 2006, the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions Act was enacted to safeguard educational rights of the minorities enshrined in Article 30(1) of the Constitution. This Act gives linguistic and religious minorities a fundamental right to establish and administer educational institutions.