Political scientists Yogendra Yadav and Suhas Palshikar wrote to the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) today, Monday, June 17, raising objection to the inclusion of their names in new NCERT textbooks despite their disassociation from the revisions previously.
They further warned that they would be compelled to take legal action if these textbooks were not immediately withdrawn, stated a PTI report.
What did their letter say?
In their letter, Palshikar and Yadav stated they do not want NCERT to "hide" behind their names to distribute Political Science textbooks that are "politically biased, academically indefensible, and pedagogically dysfunctional" to students.
Palshikar and Yadav, who were the Chief Advisors for these Political Science textbooks had previously mentioned how the rationalisation process is further "mutilating" the books beyond recognition and rendering them "academically dysfunctional".
The revised version of the textbooks, which recently hit the market, still identify them as chief advisors.
"Besides the earlier practice of selective deletions, the NCERT has resorted to significant additions and rewriting that are out of sync with the spirit of the original textbooks," they mentioned in the letter written to NCERT.
NCERT finds itself in the eye of the storm, again
The NCERT is once again embroiled in controversy due to the revised Class XII political science textbook, which omits any mention of the Babri Masjid, instead referring to it as a "three-domed structure."
The latest deletions from the textbooks include the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Rath Yatra from Somnath in Gujarat to Ayodhya; the role of kar sevaks; the communal violence following the demolition of the Babri Masjid; the imposition of President's rule in BJP-ruled states; and the BJP's expression of "regret over the events in Ayodhya".
