The relation between educational development and communal politics in Bengal during the 30s and 40s of this century is a fascinating subject which has not received the attention it deserves from scholars of either Bengal politics or development of education in Bengal. Communal politics in Bengal has been generally studied from the standpoint of land relations as an expression of land politics. This approach, while certainly not invalid, only partially explains the problem of communalism in Bengal. Communal differentiation as rooted in the realm of cultural identity remains still an autonomous reality which needs to be taken into account particularly in dealing with issues like education. Against this background, this paper deals with the communal tensions generated by the introduction of the Bengal Secondary Education Bill, 1940, in the Bengal legislative assembly during the period of provincial autonomy. Link : //bit.ly/3wDfwoK