Lawyer moves High Court to shut all schools during Ramadan

The Supreme Court lawyer cites the need for students’ religious practises

A Supreme Court lawyer has filed a petition in the High Court seeking to declare all government and private schools closed for the entire month of Ramadan.

Lawyer Ilias Ali Mandal lodged the petition on Tuesday.

The petition says, in the list of holidays and the academic calendar for 2026, government and private secondary and lower secondary schools are scheduled to remain open for the first 18 days of Ramadan.

It requests the court to ask relevant authorities to explain why keeping educational institutions open during Ramadan should not be declared illegal.

Ilias told bdnews24.com that he found it discriminatory that madrasas will remain closed for the entire month while schools remain open during the first half of Ramadan.

“It will be difficult for young children and adolescents in primary and secondary schools to observe fasting while commuting to school and attending classes. This may discourage them from practising fasting, which would hinder the observance of religious customs,” he said.

He added that class suspension would ease commuting by cutting traffic congestion.