Bharatiya Janata Party leader CT Ravi slammed Karnataka's Congress government Friday, declaring 'they're in power... but they can't change history' as the row over the ruling party's decision to revise school textbooks intensifies. "They (the Congress) can change syllabus... but they can't change the history. Everyone knows about Sangh Parivaar's patriotism... everywhere Sangh Parivaar's ideology is getting stronger... that can't be changed."
"Our ideology is patriotism... does the Congress want to eliminate patriotism and want to make this 'Mughalistaan'?" the saffron party's general secretary declared.
Ravi's statement comes a day after Karnataka's primary and secondary education minister Madhu Bangarappa said academic experts would revise content of school textbooks. "We had said in the manifesto that we will revise the textbook and we will do it," the minister said.
"The chief minister is personally interested in this... it was also clearly mentioned in our manifesto - of which I was vice president - that we will revise textbooks in the interest of the students. As we are implementing guarantees (five pre-poll promises made by the Congress), in the same way, my department will fulfill what we said," he emphasised.
READ | Karnataka government to revise school textbooks this year
{{/usCountry}}READ | Karnataka government to revise school textbooks this year
{{/usCountry}}The minister dismissed reports his government will not revise textbooks this year and was also non-commital on speculation the revisions will include deleting lessons introduced by the BJP, including one on Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh founder Keshav Baliram Hedgewar.
On those rumours the BJP's Ravi attacked the Congress over its 'intolerance'.
"They had used the word intolerance... this shows they have intolerance against a patriot. They have the right to oppose ideologically but they don't have the moral right to question Hedgewar's patriotism..." he was quoted by news agency PTI.
"Lessons on Marx and Mao - who are not from this country and were against democracy - can be there in the textbook but lessons on patriots like Hedgewar cannot be there? This is intolerance, let's see what they will do and our party will decide what to do," he said.
Ahead of the Karnataka election - in which the Congress won a landslide victory - the party had promised to undo changes made to school textbooks when the BJP was in power.
The Congress had also promised to scrap use of the National Education Policy in the state.