Cultural and Educational Rights (29 - 30)

Minority status is not based on religion alone. Linguistic and cultural minorities come under this ambit. Minorities are groups of people who are less in number than other groups in any particular part of the country or in the whole country and who share a common language or religion. Cultural and educational rights are the rights that guarantee the protection of minorities.

ARTICLE 29 - Protection of interests of minorities

Article 29 is the first article in the Constitution of India in which the term minority appears.

• Article 29(1) - Any group of citizens residing in the territory of India or any part thereof having a distinct language, script or culture shall have the right to protect it.

• Article 29(2) - No citizen shall be denied admission to any educational institution run by the Government or receiving government assistance on the grounds of religion, race, caste or language.

ARTICLE 30 - Right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions

The provision guarantees the right of religious and linguistic minorities to establish and run educational institutions of their own choice. Minority educational institutions are of three types.

1. Those which receive state recognition and assistance

2. Institutions which receive state recognition but do not receive assistance

3. Institutions which do not seek state recognition or assistance

The financial assistance provided by the Government shall be utilized for improving the quality of education.

Minorities have certain rights to establish and manage educational institutions of their own choice.

• The founders of the educational institution may elect a governing body to manage the affairs of the institution and to handle administrative matters.

• Teaching and non-teaching staff may be appointed to this governing body.

• The governing body has the right to admit deserving students and to fix a reasonable fee structure.

The rights granted to minorities under Article 30 are only to ensure equality with the majority. They are not intended to put minorities in a more advantageous position than the majority.

The majority has a heavy responsibility to create a real sense of security among the minorities... The minorities will have security only in a secular state. That will make them nationalists. The majority community should not flaunt their patriotism. They should try to understand their fears by imagining themselves in the position of the minorities. All claims for security are products of the fears in the minds of the minorities. Fear about language, script as well as the services available to them. - Sardar Hukum Singh.