The Ministry of Islamic Affairs revealed that Makthaba Salafiyyah was running unregistered schools in three regions of Maldives and that efforts were underway to shut them down.
According to local media Mihaaru, the Islamic Ministry's media official Ismail Afraah stated that the ministry would take all required measures to stop the operation of the schools and seek police involvement if any criminal offences are discovered.
Afraah disclosed that some parents refused to enroll their children in Maldives' official education system and only sent them to these unregistered schools as per instructions by Mohamed Hassan, a leading member of Makthaba Salafiyyah.
The media official added that Makthaba Salafiyyah itself was an unregistered organisation operating in Maldives.
Furthermore, the Islamic Ministry had revoked Mohamed Hassan's license to provide religious sermons following allegations that he promoted extremist ideologies.
However, during a news conference held on December 21, Makthaba Salafiyyah denied spreading extremist views and asserted that it had always spoken against extremism.
Sign In