E-Paper
NCERT rejects communal bias criticism of special partition module
NCERT said the IHC accuses the modules of ‘falsehood’ and ‘distortion’ but had not cited a “single false or distorted sentence
The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has strongly rejected the Indian History Congress’ (IHC) criticism of its new modules on “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day,” dismissing the allegations of communal bias and exoneration of the British as “unfounded and false.” Responding point-by-point to four major accusations, NCERT said it was “unfortunate that the IHC resolution seeks to mislead the unsuspecting public.”
The council’s response came on Thursday night, three days after IHC on August 25 passed a resolution against NCERT’s modules for classes 6 to 8 (middle stage), and another for classes 9 to 12 (secondary stage) on India’s partition released on August 14. NCERT’s modules on “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day” (August 14) holds three people responsible: “Jinnah, who demanded it; second, the Congress, which accepted it; and third, Mountbatten, who implemented it”.
In its resolution against NCERT modules, IHC said, “Turning history completely upside down, the modules hold not only the Muslim League but also the Indian National Congress responsible for the Partition of the country. Quite in tune with the loyalist stance of the communal forces during the freedom struggle, the British colonial rulers are given a clean chit in these modules.”
IHC, one of the largest associations of historians having more than 9,000 members, in its resolution said that “tender minds” were being fed “distorted, polarising history.”
In a press release on Thursday night, NCERT dismissed IHC criticism of its partition modules as “unfounded and false.”
Responding to four key allegations — communal intent, blaming Congress and the Muslim League for Partition, giving the British a clean chit, and ignoring Muslim victims — NCERT issued a point-by-point rebuttal.
NCERT said the IHC accuses the modules of ‘falsehood’ and ‘distortion’ but had not cited a “single false or distorted sentence.” On charges of holding Congress party and its leaders responsible for partition, NCERT said modules quote Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Patel themselves on Congress’ role in partition of India.
On the charge of exonerating the British, NCERT pointed to references from modules holding Mountbatten responsible for hastening Partition, leading to chaos. On the accusation of ignoring Muslim victims, it cited passages from modules describing communal massacres without attributing suffering to any one community.
“The modules do not communalise either the sufferers or the culprits of Partition. Nothing in them is incorrect or inauthentic,” NCERT said, adding that “it is unfortunate the IHC resolution misleads the unsuspecting public.”
IHC office-bearers did not respond to HT’s queries.
NCERT modules are supplementary resources in English and Hindi that cover contemporary and culturally significant topics. They are separate short publications on specific topics that are not part of the textbooks but taught through projects, posters, discussions, and debates. NCERT has released 19 special modules so far including recent ones on Operation Sindoor and India’s space journey.
