HJS objects to ''false'' content on King Shivaji in Goa textbook

A right-wing Hindutva outfit on

Wednesday alleged that a Class XI textbook in Goa depicted Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in poor light, and sought its immediate withdrawal.

Hindu Janajagruti Samiti (HJS) said the content on Chhatrapati Shivaji in the textbook published by the Goa Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (GBSHSE) is "totally false".

A top official of the GBSHSE said if there is anything objectionable in the book, it could be deleted.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, HJS convener Manoj Solanki said, "A supplement added to the textbook- 'History of Goa'- says that Chhatrapati Shivaji attacked Bardesh tehsil in Goa for three consecutive days, looted villages, burnt them and killed some children and women."

"All this is totally false. It is an attempt to tarnish the image of great Chhatrapati Shivrai, who even honoured the women belonging to the enemy camps," he said.

 

"No Hindu will tolerate such distorted history of the great kings of our motherland. The Goa government should immediately withdraw this history textbook or else all Shivpremis (followers of Shivaji Maharaj) will come out on the streets to protest against it," Solanki said.

He said serious action should be taken against the author of the text as well as the authorities who included it in the syllabus.

When contacted, the GBSHSE chairman Ramakrishna Samant said he was yet to receive a memorandum from the organisation.

"I have come to know that the HJS has submitted a memorandum to the Director of Education. I will have to go through the content of the memorandum," he said.

"If there is anything objectionable in the book, it could be deleted. But I can comment on it only after going through what they have to say," he said.