Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai continues to receive objections to the school textbooks revised by the Rohith Chakrathirtha-led committee, and in the latest instance, they have come from the former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda and Lingayat seer Sanehalli Panditharadhya Shivacharya Swami.
While the seer has sought complete revision, arguing that there were “mistakes” in earlier editions of textbooks too, Mr. Gowda has sought that the textbooks framed by the earlier committee led by writer Baragur Ramachandrappa be retained.
‘Numerous flaws’
Urging the State government to withdraw the revised textbooks, Mr. Gowda on Tuesday told Mr. Bommai to retain the textbooks revised by Mr. Ramachandrappa in the past since the latest revised textbooks have “numerous flaws”.
“The flaws in the revised textbook cannot be set right by printing additional pages or circulars. The revised textbooks should be withdrawn and it is better that the textbooks revised by 27 committees under Baragur Ramachandrappa be continued this year,” Mr. Gowda said in a letter to the Chief Minister. He also attached the memorandum given by the Vishwamanava Kuvempu Horata Samiti in this regard.
‘Insult’ to Kuvempu, others
He said that the textbooks had been revised by the committee headed by a person who insulted the State anthem written by Kuvempu and also insulted the State flag.
“The fact that such a person has been appointed as the chairman of the textbook revision committee is a mistake. The revision done by the committee has numerous flaws. Kuvempu’s photo has been removed from the Social Sciences textbooks and Basavanna’s social reform movement has been dropped while the services rendered by Siddaganga and Adichunchanagiri mutt seers have also been removed,” he said in the letter.
He further noted that during the revision, works of great personalities such as Akkamahadevi, Kanakadasa, Purnandradasa, and Santa Shishunala Sharif have been removed, and Kempe Gowda and Surapura Nayakas have been “ignored.”
Earlier panels too
In another development, the Sanehalli seer has argued that besides in the school textbooks revised by the Chakrathirtha committee, there were mistakes in a lesson on Basavanna in the textbooks prepared by the previous committees too, headed by writers Mr. Ramachandrappa and earlier by G.S. Mudambadithaya.
The seer has written to the Chief Minister, informing him about “major flaws” in the textbooks framed by them.
“There are many mistakes in the lesson on Basavanna in the Social Sciences Part 1 Textbook of 9th standard brought out by the committee headed by Mr. Chakrathirtha. Earlier, Mr. Ramachandrappa and Mr. Mudambadithaya had headed the textbook review committees. The Mudambadithaya committee had included many aspects which were slanderous to the Basava philosophy. The Ramachandrappa committee had drastically changed it,” the seer said in his letter.
Frame new textbooks
“So in this background, it is better to drop the earlier textbooks and prepare new textbooks,” the seer said. The seer said he had sent two texts to the Chief Minister and requested him to take a close look at them, and take suitable action.
