Granting concessions for religious holidays to students in a school where the majority of students belong to a particular religion does not violate the secular nature of the State and is not unconstitutional.

U.P. Singh, CJ.

At the very threshold, the question posed for our consideration is whether the concession granted by the State to avail the 'Ramzan' holidays by the schools where Muslim students are the majority and allowing them to work during the midsummer holidays would calculate to sabotage secularism affecting the secular nature of the State and as to whether such a concession would violate Arts.15,16, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30 & 51-A of the Constitution of India.

1(a). In view of the mass petition received by the Assistant Educational Officer from a section of guardians of the students studying in the Government L.P. School, Oorakam, where the majority of the pupils belong to the Muslim community, reporting difficulty and inconvenience for them to participate in the religious rituals and functions in case the school is permitted to continue as a general school, the Asst. Educational Officer, by his order dated. 25.8.1992 (Ext. P1) enabled the majority Muslim pupils to participate in the religious rituals and permitted them to follow the so-called 'Muslim calendar'.

2. Representation against the said order submitted by the Executive Committee members of the Parent Teachers' Association of the Government L.P. School, Oorakam and Others was soon filed before the Government stating that the action of the Assistant Educational Officer was done in a hasty manner in collusion with the President of the Parent Teachers' Association and the Headmaster of the School and it was against the interest of the students as well as the community at large. It was urged that the Assistant Educational Officer had no authority or jurisdiction to declare the said school to follow the so-called Muslim calendar which was already following the general calendar. The Parent Teachers' Association was not consulted before the change of the general calendar. There were 15 Executive Committee members in the Parent Teachers' Association. The majority of the Executive Committee members were against the move to change the general calendar to Muslim calendar. It was stated that such a policy was not only against secular interest of the nation, but it will further create communal hatred among innocent pupils. It was stated that in the interest of a secular State and with a view to foster communal harmony in the minds of the pupil and the staff, it was highly necessary that the general calendar, which stood scrutiny for more than sixty years, is restored. Even though the majority of the students in the school were of Muslim community, the general body had decided to follow the general calendar to maintain the secular state of the school. For maintaining the standard of education of the school, it was absolutely necessary that the general calendar is followed. Following the Muslim calender with intermittent holidays, there is every likelihood of sudden fall in the standard of education. Therefore, request was made to the Government to take serious view of the matter and issue appropriate orders restoring the general calender to be followed by Government L.P. School, Oorakam.

3. Considering the said representation - Ext. P2 - the impugned order passed by the Joint Secretary to the Government, contained in Ext. P5, approved the order of the Assistant Educational Officer, who had ordered that since the majority of the pupils in Assistant Educational Officer, who had ordered that since the majority of the pupils in the Government L.P. School, Oorakam belonged to Muslim community, the request made by the President of Parent Teachers' Association be accepted and the school will function as per the Muslim calendar. While considering the representation filed by Sri. Chalil Kunhimmu Haji, one of the committee members of the Parent Teachers' Association of the said school, the Government examined the matter and heard all the interested parties. After considering all the rival contentions, the order was passed directing that since the acamedic year 1993-94 would come to