Text book revision: NCERT drops some references to Babri demolition, Gujarat riots, Manipur

NCERT revises Class 11 and 12 textbooks, dropping controversial references and aligning content with latest political developments in India.

Dropping references of demolition of Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, dropping the mention of Muslims killed in Gujarat riots, dropping references to Manipur and clarifying India’s stand on Jammu and Kashmir are the latest round of revisions made public by National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) in its textbooks for Class 11 and 12. 

The changes documented by the NCERT in a tabular format do not yet reflect in the online textbooks, but sources say textbooks will be updated soon. “Content is updated as per latest development in politics. Text on Ayodhya issue has been thoroughly revised because of the latest changes brought by Supreme Court’s Constitutional bench verdict and its widespread welcoming reception,” NCERT has said in it’s rationale for revising content in textbooks. 

Further, in Chapter 5 of Class 11 political science textbook - Democratic Politics - I, the mention of Gujarat Riots has been dropped. In page 86, while the existing version reads, “Do you notice references to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in the news collage on this Page ? These references reflect the growing awareness of human rights and struggles for human dignity. Many cases of human rights violations in diverse fields, for instance, Gujarat riots, are being brought to the public notice from across India.”

NCERT has said that this will be changed to, “Many cases of human rights violations in diverse fields are being brought to the public notice from across India.”

The clarification NCERT has provided for the change reads, “The news collage and content refer to an incident that is 20-years-old and has been resolved through the judicial process.”

In another stark change, consider page 112 of Class 11 political science textbook titled ‘Political Theory,’ where in Chapter 8 - Secularism, NCERT has dropped the reference of Muslims killed in post Godhra riots. 

While the existing version reads, “More than 1,000 persons, mostly Muslims, were massacred during the post Godhra riots in Gujarat in 2002,” the changed version will reflect, “More than 1,000 persons were killed during the post Godhra riots in Gujarat in 2002.”