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Expressing disappointment with NCERT‘s rejection of their request to remove their names from the rationalised political science textbooks, Yogendra Yadav and Suhas Palshikar issued a public statement on Saturday, stating that if NCERT had the legal authority to “distort and mutilate” educational material, then they should also be able to exercise their “moral and legal right” to disassociate themselves from books they do not endorse.
Their statement reads: “The continuation of our names inside the present version of the book creates a false impression of endorsement, and we have every right to dissociate with this insinuation. Besides, the two of us are clearly the “authors” of the signed letter that introduces each book. How can we be forced to introduce a textbook that we no longer recognise?” Yadav and Palshikar had served as chief advisors to NCERT for the political science books for classes 9 to 12 initially published in 2006-07.
The war of words between NCERT and its two former chief advisors started on Friday morning with Yadav and Palshikar writing a letter to NCERT director DS Saklani expressing their concerns about the recent textbook rationalisation exercise, describing the books as “mutilated and academically dysfunctional.” They requested NCERT to remove their names from the political science textbooks for classes 9 to 12.
In response, NCERT took to social media late Friday to clarify that the textbook development committees cease to exist once the books are published, emphasising its right to make changes based on copyright ownership. The Council also stated that the withdrawal of association by any member is not possible as the textbooks are a collective effort. NCERT further said that it continues to print the names of all advisors and committee members “for the sake of record” and to acknowledge their academic contribution.
Yadav and Palshikar’s statement on Saturday addressed NCERT’s rejection, criticizing the Council’s defense as “ridiculously technical” and claiming that it was attempting to pre-empt other academics or chief advisors from making similar demands. They reiterated their demand to remove their names from the textbooks, emphasising that the textbooks, which were once a source of pride, have become a source of embarrassment for them.
“If the name of the Textbook Development Committee is there to acknowledge our contribution, as the NCERT claims, then we must be free to decline this generosity. If the names of this committee are reported as a matter of record, as claimed in this statement, then it must also be recorded that we do not approve of the present version,” the statement issued on Saturday reads.
The NCERT school textbooks are at the centre of yet another controversy, with academicians and politicians criticising the sweeping changes and deletions decided last year (and implemented this year) under the pretext of reducing the curriculum to help students recover from learning disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. These changes include removing all references to the 2002 Gujarat riots, reducing content related to the Mughal era and the caste system, and dropping chapters on protests and social movements.
