April 21 set for Supreme Court hearing on Wesley Girls’ case

The Supreme Court has scheduled Tuesday, April 21, 2026, to hear a case questioning the legality of certain policies at Wesley Girls’ High School.

The suit, filed by Shafic Osman, seeks a declaration that the school’s rules, said to require Muslim students to participate in Christian worship and limit their ability to practise their faith, violate the 1992 Constitution.

During the last sitting, the court gave the school’s Board of Directors 14 days to respond to the claims. However, the school has challenged the suit, arguing that its Board does not have the legal standing to be sued. It insists that the Trustees of the Methodist Church, who own the institution’s assets, are the proper party to the case.

Meanwhile, the Catholic Church has submitted written arguments to aid the court’s deliberations. The Church contends that the Supreme Court does not have jurisdiction, suggesting that such matters should instead be handled by the High Court, which is responsible for enforcing fundamental rights.

It further argued that mission schools are privately established and managed using church resources, not state-owned entities. As a result, it maintains that students who voluntarily enrol in such schools may be considered to have accepted certain limitations on their religious practices.

The Deputy Attorney-General, Dr Justice Srem-Sai, also supported the view that the school belongs to the Methodist Church rather than the state, and therefore has the right to uphold its religious doctrines. He added that receiving government support does not strip the institution of its religious identity or freedoms.

The case is expected to examine the tension between constitutional guarantees of religious freedom and the independence of faith-based schools.