BJP govts reject 'no NCERT' order

BJP ruled states not to ban NCERT textbooks

Adopting a confrontationist posture, education ministers of the BJP-ruled states yesterday decided not to implement the Centre's "arbitrary and anti-people decision" to withdraw history and social sciences textbooks published by NCERT.

The ministers, who had earlier in the day walked out of the meeting of the central advisory board on education here, protesting "politicisation of education", met and unanimously decided to reject the Union human resource development ministry's move, Rajasthan Education Minister Ghanshyam Tiwari told reporters here.

Besides Tiwari, the meeting was attended by education ministers of Gujarat Anandiben Patel, Madhya Pradesh Alka Jain, Chhattisgarh Ajai Chandrakar and Jharkhand Pashupati Nath Singh.

Tiwari said the BJP's central leadership would discuss the issue with the chief ministers of other BJP-ruled states including Manohar Parikar of Goa who were not present at yesterday's meeting.

"We reject the decision to withdraw the books on history and social science published under the NDA rule and replace them with old books published since 1968. We resolved to continue with the existing books which conform to the national cariculum framework for school education 2000 which was upheld by the supreme court in its historic September 12 judgement", the ministers said in a resolution passed at the meeting.

Accusing the Union HRD Minister Arjun Singh of trying to get endorsed the UPA government's common minimum programme and packing CABE with his "yes men, who had nothing to do with education," Tiwari said the Centre's decision to replace the books was "political" and under "pressure" from Left parties and other allies.

Also, the central government did not consult the states while nominating members to cabe, he said circulating the list of such members. The nominees include Urdu lyricist Javed Akhtar, Gandhian Nirmala Deshpande, activists Praful Bidwai, Teesta Setlavad and known RSS baiters like Habib Tanvir.

Citing an example, Tiwari said the government had banned four books including one by Karan Singh titled Vedanta under pressure from Left parties and another by Tamil saint poet Thiruvalluvur.

However, the proscription on these two books was lifted "after Singh met Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and when the DMK objected to the ban," he claimed.

When asked if the BJP education ministers would boycott the conference tomorrow, Tiwari said, they would participate if the discussions focussed on literacy and primary and higher education but "if they discuss political agena we'll stay away tomorrow also."

Pointing out that the old books which the HRD minister was bringing back are "outdated and violate national policy on education (1986)", they said Ajun Singh's step in this regard was both "retrogressive and against national interest."

They also alleged that the old books had derogatory references to several communities like Sikhs, Jats, Jains and south Indians among others.

"Even the Congress government of Delhi had passed a resolution against one of the same books which Arjun Singh is trying to bring back because it insulted the memory of great Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur," a statement issued by the ministers said.

Brushing aside the charge the NDA government had attempted to saffronise education during its rule, Tiwari said the Supreme Court had upheld the changes made in NCERT text books then.

Even "Singh's handpicked 'panel of historians' were unsuccessful in their best attempts to point out flaws in facts and interpretations in these books," he said.

The ministers said in the statement that Singh was in the "clutches of Marxists who are the biggest villains of history. They insulted Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, worked as informers for the British during the freedom struggle, helped China in 1962 war and encouraged wholesale illegal immigration of bangladeshis."