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Draft textbook in Kerala says Subhas Chandra Bose ‘fled to Germany in fear of British’, govt says ‘historical mistake’

The controversial portion was seen in the teachers’ handbook for class four, prepared by the State Council of Educational Research and Training.

The Education Department has since corrected the draft and debarred the members of the textbook committee from further academic activities. (Express Archive/Partha Paul)

A draft school textbook in Kerala, which said Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose had fled to Germany in fear of the British, has courted controversy, with the state government saying the portion with the “historical mistakes” had been corrected.

The controversial portion was seen in the teachers’ handbook for class four, prepared by the State Council of Educational Research and Training. The Education Department has since corrected the draft and debarred the members of the textbook committee from further academic activities.

Education Minister and CPI(M) leader V Sivankutty told the media, “Certain historical mistakes have emerged in the draft of the textbook. When the issue came to notice, directions were given to make corrections and ensure that the textbook is printed only with historical facts. The Kerala government does not share the stand of the Union government that history can be distorted for political ends. SCERT has been given direction to debar the members of the particular textbook committee.”

The RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad said there were more mistakes in the book. “The distortion of history was the CPI(M) government’s malicious attempts to disseminate distorted history to students in Kerala. Furthermore, the same textbook deliberately omitted the names of Assam and Jharkhand from a map in the second chapter. This omission is part of a hidden political agenda to destroy the nation’s integrity and secretly support the Chinese Communist Party’s attempt to invade Assam,” ABVP national secretary Shravan B Raj said in a statement.

Shaju Philip

Shaju Philip is a Senior Assistant Editor at The Indian Express, where he leads the publication's coverage from Kerala. With over 25 years of experience in mainstream journalism, he is one of the most authoritative voices on the socio-political, religious, and developmental landscape of South India. Expertise, Experience, and Authority Decades of Regional Specialization: Shaju has spent more than two decades documenting the "Kerala Model" of development, its complex communal dynamics, and its high-stakes political environment. Key Coverage Beats: His extensive reporting portfolio includes: Political & Governance Analysis: In-depth tracking of the LDF and UDF coalitions, the growth of the BJP in the state, and the intricate workings of the Kerala administration. Crime & Investigative Journalism: Noted for his coverage of high-profile cases such as the gold smuggling probe, political killings, and the state’s counter-terrorism efforts regarding radicalization modules. Crisis Management: He has led ground-level reporting during major regional crises, including the devastating 2018 floods, the Nipah virus outbreaks, and the Covid-19 pandemic response. ... Read More

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