Nagesh: Bible, Quran religious texts, Gita speaks about values

When questioned about the government’s plans to make Bhagavad Gita part of the state’s moral science syllabus, Karnataka minister Nagesh said that Gita was not any other religious book

Karnataka education minister BC Nagesh on Wednesday said religious texts can’t be part of the curriculum, and Bhagavad Gita is more than just a religious book, unlike the Bible.

Karnataka education minister BC Nagesh on Wednesday said religious texts can’t be part of the curriculum, and Bhagavad Gita is more than just a religious book, unlike the Bible. (ANI)

“Bible and Quran are not allowed in schools as they are religious texts, and the block education officers have been asked to verify as there are some allegations that institutions run by Christians are asking children to carry Bible in bags and keep it with them during prayer. On their school websites they have asked to admit children only those who accept Bible. Hence, we will look into these allegations. We are not interfering in their administrative matters,” he said.

When questioned about the government’s plans to make Bhagavad Gita part of the state’s moral science syllabus, he said that Gita was not any other religious book. “Gita speaks about the values and life and not about religious practices. One cannot find references to religious practices in Gita. Whereas, Bible says that to be a Christian, one has to believe in Bible. Gita has no such comments,” he said.

He further added that irrespective of their religion, students should learn about great personalities such as Jesus, Swami Vivekananda and others as a part of the curriculum. However, if religious classes such as catechism are conducted in the schools, it is against the regulations of the Karnataka Education Act.

The minister added that government would not interfere in the administration of the schools and colleges run by minority institutions. The educational institutions have their freedom in administration but not in making changes in the curriculum when they are registered under Karnataka Education Act (KEA). “They have to comply with the KEA regulations, irrespective of the fact that they are minority institutions or not,” he said.

The statement comes after the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), in a letter to the deputy commissioner and district magistrate of Bengaluru Urban, Manjunath, sought a probe against Clarence high school in Bengaluru for allegedly imposing Christian religious views on children.

The Christian school had come under fire by right-wing outfit Hindu Janajagruthi Samithi (HJS) for making Bible classes compulsory for all the students, including non-Christians. The HJS launched a campaign against the Clarence high school for directing all the students to compulsorily take part in Bible lessons.

According to the details shared on Monday by HJS spokesperson Mohan Gowda, the school had forced the parents to sign a declaration, in which they have to accept that their child will attend Bible classes.

The ‘Declaration by Parents,’ read, “You affirm that your child will attend all classes, including morning assembly, scripture class and clubs for his/her own moral and spiritual welfare, and will not object to carrying the Bible and Hymn book during his/her stay at Clarence High School.”

Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Bangalore (AOB), Peter Machado, called allegations of “imposing” the Bible and “forced conversions” false and misleading.

The Archbishop strongly refuted claims of students being “forced” to bring the Bible to school and allegations of forced religious conversions, saying Christian minority institutions were being targeted by a communal bogey. He also pointed to the Karnataka government’s plans to introduce Hindu religious texts like Bhagavad Gita as the moral science syllabus and questioned if that can be considered as inducing students to be converted to those particular religions.

“The burden of the allegation lies in providing tangible proof of conversion in the school. Let any member of the public provide even a single instance of conversion in hundreds of schools run by the Christian managements in the last few decades,” Machado said in a press statement.