Rajasthan's decision to discontinue four school textbooks has ignited a political firestorm, with accusations of historical revisionism and attempts to erase the contributions of key figures.
Key Points
- State education minister defends the move, stating the books were not part of the examination system and contained inaccurate history.
- Congress party accuses the government of attempting to erase history and sideline contributions of Congress leaders.
- The discontinued books cover Rajasthan's freedom movement, history, culture, and India's post-independence era.
- The government aims to rewrite the textbooks to include a more complete and accurate representation of historical events and figures.
The Rajasthan government's decision to discontinue four school textbooks for the 2026-27 academic session has triggered a political row, with Education Minister Madan Dilawar defending the move on Friday and the Congress calling it an attempt to "erase history".
According to an order issued by the Directorate of Secondary Education, following recommendations of the Board of Secondary Education, Ajmer, four books for Classes 9 to 12 have been discontinued, and will not be taught in schools.
The books include "Rajasthan's Freedom Movement and Valour Tradition" for Class 9, "Rajasthan's History and Culture" for Class 10, and "Golden India After Independence" (Parts 1 and 2) for Classes 11 and 12, respectively.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, the minister said the books were not part of the examination system and were meant only for general knowledge.
"These books had no contribution to results as their marks were not added. They were meant for knowledge, but even that knowledge was not appropriate. We are not removing them, but attempting to rewrite them as incorrect history was being taught earlier," the minister said.
Rejecting allegations of tampering with history, Dilwar said, "History should present the complete reality." These textbooks highlighted selective facts while ignoring other important parts, and several eminent leaders, such as Lal Bahadur Shastri and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, were not adequately mentioned.
Personalities like B R Ambedkar were also not properly represented in the textbooks, he said, adding that "Dr Ambedkar was not an ordinary person, but was reduced to a single-line mention. Such national figures should be properly taught."
The minister further said that important developments such as the abrogation of Article 370 and contributions of leaders across political lines, including Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Morarji Desai and Narendra Modi, should also be included in the curriculum.
Reacting to the decision, Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee chief Govind Singh Dotasra on Thursday termed the move an "attack on history".
"The government wants to present an incomplete version of history to an entire generation by removing these books," Dotasra said.
Questioning the rationale for dropping the textbooks, Dotasra alleged that the move was to sideline the contributions of Congress leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and Manmohan Singh.
"If there were factual inaccuracies, they could have been corrected. Removing entire books shows the intention is not reform but erasing history," Dotsara alleged.
The Congress leader also alleged that key aspects such as the freedom movement, constitutional values and the development of national institutions were also being excluded.
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