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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | ‘Autonomous’ NCERT should retain toons

‘Autonomous’ NCERT should retain toons

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published Published on May 17, 2012   modified Modified on May 17, 2012
-The Times of India

The government has maintained that NCERT is an autonomous body. Well, if the insistence is correct, the cartoons which triggered a political storm should stay in the textbooks. 

A month before the row over the cartoons erupted, leading to the decision to banish them, NCERT had defended their use in textbooks, even telling the National Commission for SCs that there was nothing offensive about the B R Ambedkar cartoon as was being made out. 

After the dalit panel expressed concern over the offensive depiction of the father of Indian Constitution, the NCERT wrote back on April 18, saying, "The cartoon in question comments on the making of the Constitution rather than makers of the Constitution." 

The council's upfront defence was contrary to HRD minister Kapil Sibal's stance that the cartoons were inappropriate. Sibal has since drawn flak from commentators for political capitulation at the cost of constitutional freedom of expression. 

A group in April 10 handed NCSC chairman P L Punia a copy of the cartoons from the textbook 'Bharat ka Sanvidhan'. In response to a query from the panel, NCERT said the book had nothing offensive. It said the textbooks "provided extensive coverage to the immense contribution of Baba Saheb Dr B R Ambedkar to Indian society. He is hailed as the principal architect of the Constitution of India". 

The council added, "Political cartoons were used as a source of learning in all the political science textbooks of classes IX-XII. Chapter 1, 'Constitution: why and how?' explains the process of making the Constitution in general and the Constitution of India in particular. The cartoon in question comments on the making of the Constitution rather than makers of the Constitution." 

The defence that the textbook eulogized Ambedkar showed that NCERT was confident of its decision on the toons, marking that HRD minister's bowing to the anger in Parliament was dictated by political concerns. Many Congressmen felt the government had acted in haste. 

Insiders said Congress was in a spot. While it was loathe to be on the wrong side of dalit uproar, it knew that agreeing with the protests would dent its equity with the liberal constituency. A leader said it was keen to ward off political costs, compounded by BSP chief Mayawati's emergence on the Delhi scene. 

The dalit leader has taken to targeting Congress since she shifted to Delhi from Lucknow, painting it as "anti-dalit" during the debate on Supreme Court decision to strike down reservation in promotions. She again targeted the Congress in the toon row. The Centre has called an all-party meeting on May 23 to discuss ways of neutralizing the apex court order quashing 'promotion quota'. 

Congress leaders said with crises on dalit front accumulating, Congress opted for the easy way out of the political mess. 

The Times of India, 17 May, 2012, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Autonomous-NCERT-should-retain-toons/articleshow/13177160.cms


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