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Stir threat: Nehru out of textbooks in MP
Congress has threatened a statewide agitation over the BJP Govt's move.
After removing nursery rhymes from the school syllabus, the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh has dropped a poem on Jawaharlal Nehru and his memoirs on his wife Kamla Nehru from the textbooks.
The move has evoked a strong protest from Congress, which has threatened statewide agitation against it.
Though the poem Chacha Nehru Mujhe Bana Do was dropped from Standard-I book, Nehru's memoirs were replaced by another of his writings Vaseeyat in Standard VII textbook, State School Education Minister Narottam Mishra said.
Similarly, a portion of letters written by Nehru to Indira Gandhi Pita Ki Chitthi Beti Ke Naam, were included in the course material of Standard IV, he said.
Meanwhile, accusing BJP of "saffronising education, state Congress General Secretary Manak Agrawal alleged that it was working on the directions of the RSS.
Governor Balram Jakhar's intervention was sought to prevent 'implementation of RSS' saffron agenda', he said, threatening to launch a statewide agitation against it.
However, denying any political motive, Mishra said, "These (changes) were affected on the recommendation of a permanent committee formed to review the school course material."
"Had there been any political design, we would have simply removed chapters on Nehru, without adding his other works in school syllabus," Mishra said.
The move came barely a week after the state government removed several poems from primary school syllabus including the famous nursery rhyme, "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star...," saying it was "an attempt to reduce western influence on children."
