Gujarat pressurized to recall pages of controversial school textbook

Ahmedabad – The education department of the state government of Gujarat has decided to withdraw certain pages of a controversial textbook that human rights and civil rights activists claim contains distorted facts and is communally biased.

According to Fr. Cedric Prakash, his human rights organization, Prashant, has demanded unconditional withdrawal of the textbook.

In a press release on November 12, the organization stated that the State Department of Education has resolved to withdraw a 10–page chapter entitled, “Present Currents of World History” from the controversial textbook.

However, the resolution made by the department is “not sufficient,” Fr. Prakash warned. According to several human rights groups and activists, the textbook, which was prescribed for Class IX students, contains historical and factual errors.

Besides the language and grammar being inaccurate, the text appear to contain distorted and biased statements and undermine children’s right to objective and impartial education.

According to Fr. Prakash, historical facts have been deliberately distorted to promote and favor ideologies that supported Hindu nationhood for India or Hindutva. The textbook also contains communally biased statements against Christians and Muslims, he said.

Besides factual discrepancies, strong anti–women bias and edification of Hitler and Nazism can also be found in the book.

Meanwhile, the Education Board has attempted to play down the controversy by stating that some “translation errors” have crept into the textbook, thereby forcing them to order withdrawal parts of the text.

Human rights watchdogs feel that incompetent and communally biased professionals have been appointed by the Gujarat government in the education department in its attempt to saffronise education.

“Competent and unbiased professionals must be appointed to the ‘expert panel’ and the names of panel members should be made public,” Fr. Prakash said. “The Education Department must ensure that quality education are provided to the children of Gujarat.”