In a recent ruling, the Supreme Court took a balanced approach to the century-old Ramlila festivities held at a school playground in Uttar Pradesh. While allowing the celebrations to proceed for now, the court also instructed the state government to find a different venue for future events, ensuring that children retain their essential play areas.
The decision came after Ramlila organizers urgently appealed to the apex court. The Allahabad High Court had previously issued an ex parte stay on the ongoing festivities at the Jilla Parishad Vidhyalaya in Firozabad district. The organizers highlighted that Ramlila had been celebrated on these school grounds for over a century, with the school authorities and even students often participating without objection.
Conversely, the petitioner who initiated the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the High Court argued that “secular” school grounds should not be used for religious functions. They stressed that playgrounds are vital spaces for children’s recreation and should not be usurped. The petitioner also pointed out that a large stage, featuring interlocking tiles, had been erected on the school ground for the event.
Justice Surya Kant, leading the Bench, questioned the petitioner’s timing: “The event has been organized at the same space for 100 years. Why did you not come earlier? Why did you not complain to the district authorities? Why did you approach court when the celebrations had already commenced on September 14?”
Ultimately, the Supreme Court suspended the High Court’s stay order, permitting the current Ramlila celebrations to continue. However, it urged the High Court, which is scheduled to revisit the case on November 4, to “impress upon” the district administration the need to secure an alternative location for these events in the future.
Justice Kant emphasized that this directive aims for the playground to be “exclusively used by the students of the school,” thereby concluding the immediate matter.
This isn’t the first time the Supreme Court has weighed in on such matters. Back in 2018, the court referred to a Constitution Bench the significant question of whether religious and ceremonial activities should be permitted on state-owned premises, given India’s secular constitutional framework.
Referencing a past incident at Ramlila Maidan, the Supreme Court had previously reminded state authorities about the fundamental right to education, highlighting it as part of the Directive Principles of State Policy. This principle elevates compulsory and primary education to a component of Article 21 (right to life) of the Constitution, which led to the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2010.
Adding to the legal precedents, a 2023 ruling by the Calcutta High Court unequivocally stated that a school playground, even if belonging to a government institution, “could by no stretch of imagination be used to hold festivals.”
In the case of Sudarsan Mandal versus The State Of West Bengal, the High Court had affirmed that school premises cannot be designated as a “public ground” for hosting any type of festival.
The Calcutta High Court specifically observed: “Even if a school playground belongs to a government-aided school, the same ipso facto does not convert the playground of the school, which is an educational institution, to a public, free-for-all area where any and everybody can seek to organize any festival whatsoever.”