HC questions legality of scrapping music, physical education teacher posts
The rule follows the hearing on a writ petition filed by Supreme Court lawyer Barrister Sarwat Siraj Shukla
The High Court today (10 November) asked the government to explain within two weeks why its decision to scrap the posts of music teacher and physical training instructor in government primary schools should not be declared illegal.
The bench of Justice Fahmida Quader and Justice Md Ashif Hasan issued the rule yesterday following a preliminary hearing on a writ petition, challenging the recent amendment to the Government Primary School Teacher Recruitment Rules, 2025.
The petition contested the 2 November gazette notification that removed provisions for recruiting music teachers and physical training instructors in primary schools.
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Cultural and physical education take a backseat as Govt scraps music and PE teaching positions
The court directed the education secretary, the primary and mass education secretary, and the chairman of the Bangladesh Public Service Commission to respond to the rule.
The writ petition was filed by Supreme Court lawyer Barrister Sarwat Siraj Shukla, who also argued for the petitioner in court.
The ministry revised the recruitment rules after major Islamist organisations criticised the inclusion of the two specialised posts and threatened protests, demanding the appointment of religion teachers instead.
The original rules, published in late August, had created four categories under Schedule-1: head teacher, assistant teacher, assistant teacher (music), and assistant teacher (physical education). Under the amended regulations, only head teacher and general assistant teacher posts remain, with all references to music and PE positions removed.
Students, artists protest abolition of music, physical education teacher posts in primary schools
The amendment also corrected a phrasing error on merit-based allocations, clarifying that 80% of common posts may be filled by candidates with degrees in "science and other subjects".
The government's move has drawn widespread criticism from various quarters across the country.
