In this Sanskrit school in Rajasthan, over 80% of students are Muslims

Students chanting Sanskrit shlokas in the padmasana (cross-legged) posture with thumbs touching their index fingers makes it look like an ancient gurukul. Just that it is the Rajkiya Thakur Harisingh Shekhawat Mandawa Praveshika Sanskrit Vidyalaya, a government school with over 80% Muslim students, at Jaipur’s biggest Muslim “conclave” of Nahari-Ka-Naka.

Learning the ancient Indian language has become a way of life for the school’s 277 students, including 222 Muslims, whose spirit has not been dampened by the recent controversy surrounding the appointment of Sanskrit professor Firoz Khan at UP’s Banaras Hindu University (BHU).

Several students here hope to have a career in Sanskrit teaching. “Mam naam Ilma Qureshi (My name is Ilma Qureshi),” a nine-yearold introduced herself in Sanskrit to this correspondent. She then sang Vedic shlokas as others joined in a chorus in the classroom.

A class IV student, Ilma lives with her parents and siblings in a rented accommodation that shares its boundary with a Hanuman temple. She has memorised the entire Hanuman Chalisa, which the temple plays during the morning and evening aartis. Ilma is not the lone “star kid” in her class. Her brother Rehan Qureshi can memorise the toughest Sanskrit sentences in minutes.

“I like Sanskrit and want to teach the language to my siblings, relatives and everyone,” said Ilma, who also regularly goes to a madrassa in the evening for her religious education.

Ved Nidhi Sharma, headmaster of the school, said these (mostly Muslim) children have command over four languages — Sanskrit, Arabic, Hindi and Urdu. “As they are exposed to multiple languages, their articulation and pronunciation of the toughest Sanskrit words is very good. They always score high marks in Sanskrit, and the result is that my school is far better than many others.”

Sharma added that the Muslim students are great ambassadors of the language. “All students come from extremely poor families and most of them support their parents by doing menial jobs after school.” One cause of concern is the dropout rate, which is very high, especially among girls.

This institution has also earned the distinction of being a government-run school that receives a high number of applications for admission. Every year, it has to refuse admission to over a hundred applicants due to lack of space.
The school is in a dilapidated heritage building donated by the erstwhile ruling family of Mandawa in 2004. It operates in two shifts — first for upper primary and secondary classes and the second in the afternoon for primary classes. It comes under the state’s Sanskrit education department. The school administration is hoping to double its strength by next year as they have received Rs 10 lakh from Kishenpole MLA Amin Kagzi. The amount will be spent on new classrooms, computers, blackboards and books.

Learning Sanskrit has become a way of life for the school’s 277 students.

Shoebkhan@timesgroup.com