Eight months after taking over the reins, Culture Minister Jaipal Reddy today made clear his intent to ‘‘detoxify’’ the Ministry by announcing his decision to look into a series on Mahatma Gandhi, brought out by the NDA Government.Reddy, who has so far avoided challenging the decisions of his predecessors, today announced the appointment of a committee of scholars to look into the ‘‘errors’’ in the series, titled The Complete Works of Mahatma Gandhi’.‘‘There have been complaints about the cavalier manner in which the original works have been tampered with and about numerous errors that had crept into the new series. Since I do not have an answer, I have decided to appoint a committee of scholars to look into the matter,’’ said Reddy.While his colleagues, especially HRD Minister Arjun Singh, has worn his ‘‘secular ideology’’ on his sleeves, Reddy has been restrained. Recently, he even invited the ire of the CPI(M) in its journal for ‘‘going slow’’ on detoxification drive.Reddy has maintained he is doing his job, ‘‘silently.’’ Speaking to Express, Reddy pointed to the revamping of cultural institutions like the IGNCA and the Nehru Memorial Library. He was quick to add, ‘‘The Culture Department will involve itself, as much as it is necessary, as these institutions are autonomous bodies.’’Reddy has also ‘‘silently’’ buried the multi-crore Saraswati River Project, launched by the NDA government. The project attracted a lot of controversy for seeking to find a mythical river in a bid to reinforce Hindutva theories. There has also been speculation on the lack of co-ordination between the Culture and Tourism ministries. Case in point is the Taj Mahal’s 350th anniversary celebrations.‘‘I am not interested in a slanging match,’’ says Reddy.
