BJP ministers to take on Arjun

Education ministers from BJP-ruled states are preparing for a showdown with Union HRD Minister Arjun Singh at the meeting of the Central Adv...

Education ministers from BJP-ruled states are preparing for a showdown with Union HRD Minister Arjun Singh at the meeting of the Central Advisory Board for Education (CABE) in New Delhi next Tuesday. This is a crucial meeting of the CABE and will discuss the new curriculum framework of the National Council for Educational Research and Training.

Education ministers from Gujarat, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand are assembling on Monday, a day before the CABE meet to chalk out a concrete strategy. Last year, it was the same group which had embarrassed Singh at the first meeting of the CABE by raising slogans and accusing Singh of pursuing a ‘‘divisive education policy’’.

Ghanshayam Tewari, Rajasthan education minister, is leading the pack. He was the most vocal at last year’s CABE discussions as well. In fact, Singh could silence him a little only by offering him the chairmanship of the committee on secondary education. It is he who has since been in touch with some of the other BJP ministers.

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Another proactive education minister is Gujarat’s Anandibehn Patel. She will also provide leadership to this group along with Tewari. This group of five ministers are trying to rope in the education minister of Orissa, a state ruled by the BJP-BJD alliance.

Obviously, the issue at stake is the UPA’s education policy and the stress on detoxification. The text book has not been changed from the NDA era in any of these states. In fact, the Jharkhand government had specially ordered and received a supply of the old NCERT syllabus books last year.

Speaking to The Indian Express from Jaipur, Tewari said: ‘‘It is not just that we the education ministers are interested. Even our party leadership is quite keen that we don’t allow Arjun Singh to have his way without a fight.’’

According to these education ministers, they have received telephone calls from the former HRD Minister, Murli Manohar Joshi. Joshi will guide them on the different issues that need to be taken up including the‘‘ill-treatment meted out to the former NCERT boss, Dr J S Rajput’’. Also guiding the education ministers on the issue and ensuring that they speak in one voice is the low-profile BJP general secretary, Sanjay Joshi.

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With the new history texts to be trashed by the BJP ministers because they are ‘‘only reprints of 1987 texts’’, the CABE meeting next Tuesday is expected to be a heated affair.

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