'BJP, INLD responsible for controversial text in NCERT'

Chandigarh, Aug 31 (UNI) Holding the leaders of the BJP and the INLD responsible for the ''objectionable'' references in the NCERT books, Political Advisor to Haryana Chief Minister Virender Singh today asked them to seek an apology from the ''people whose feelings had been hurt by these reference.'' In a statement here, he said the present edition of these books were published in 2004 when Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister, Mr Murli Manohar Joshi was the Union Human Resource Development Minister and INLD was the ruling party in the Haryana.

Even the first edition of NCERT books was published in 1989 when the Janta Dal was in the power at the Centre and Mr Devi Lal was the then Deputy Prime Minister, Prof Virender said.

He said the INLD leaders were answerable to the people as to how the children were taught objectionable references against the Jats and other communities when Om Prakash Chautala was the Chief Minister of the state.

''They never tried to delete the objectionable contents from the text books,'' he observed.

Accusing the BJP and the INLD leaders of having dual character, he wondered why the BJP government in Rajasthan was keeping mum on the removal of objectionable portions from the NCERT books.

''Is the Jat community of Rajasthan not affected by these references The INLD and BJP were unnecessarily blaming the Congress for the controversial portions in the NCERT books to gain cheap publicity and political mileage,'' he alleged.

Interestingly, he said, both these parties had never spoken on the issue during their own regimes.

Terming as historic the Haryana Chief Minister's move to remove the objectionable text, he said the prompt decision had been taken with a view to protecting the ''self respect of the Jat community and others.'' He advised the BJP and the INLD leaders that they impress upon the governments in Rajasthan and other BJP-ruled states to expunge the disputed references.

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