Assam: Muslim boy topped Class 10 exams studied in RSS-backed school

Mangalore Today News Network

Guwahati, June 01, 2016: After scripting history by winning Assembly Elections in Assam for the first time, the Bharatiya Janata Party has got one more reason to celebrate in the northeastern state.

Sarfaraz Hussain, who topped the state board’s Class 10 exam with 590 marks out of a maximum 600, is a student of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)-backed school.

The results for the High School Leaving Certificate Examination (HSLC) exam​ were declared on Tuesday.

16-year-old Sarfaraz is the first Muslim to pass from Sankardev Sishu Niketan, one of the many schools run by the Vidya Bharati-affiliated Sishu Shiksha Samiti, Assam.

Vidya Bharati is the RSS’ education wing.

Sankardev Sishu Niketan, situated at Betkuchi on the outskirts of Guwahati, has 24 Muslim students.

Talking to a newspaper, Sarfaraz’s father, Ajmal Hussain, said he sent his son to study in the school because it provided free education. “It would have otherwise been difficult to sustain his studies with my meagre income as a waiter in a small restaurant,” he said.

He further gave credit for his son’s success to his hard work, teachers’ support and Goddess Saraswati.

Meanwhile, BJP’s Himanta Biswa Sarma, who has been appointed as convenor of a newly-floated North-East Democratic Alliance, announced a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh for Sarfaraz Hussain.

Of the 381,585 students, 239,614 passed Class 10 exams. Sarfaraz was one of 44 candidates of Vidya Bharati-affiliated schools in the Top 20.