BENGALURU: In an effort to put an end to the ongoing controversy surrounding revised school textbooks, the state on Friday decided to review and remove objectionable points about 12th century social reformer Basavanna in the revised textbooks besides dissolving the Rohith Chakrathirtha-headed textbook revision panel.
These decisions were taken after a meeting between CM Basavaraj Bommai and school education minister B C Nagesh late on Friday. Panditaradhya seer of Sanehalli Mutt and others had written a letter to the CM last week claiming that 'misinterpreted' facts about Basavanna had been inserted in the textbooks and had demanded immediate withdrawal of the lesson. tnn
Several writers, including Devanuru Mahadeva, had taken strong objection to contents of the revised textbooks accusing the government of trying to saffronise primary education. Some had even withdrawn permission to include their works in the textbooks.
"The government has an open mind to revise textbooks once again if there are any objectionable points in the current version which have been revised by the Rohith Chakrathirtha committee," the CM said in a release after the meeting. "As far as the textbook revision committee is concerned, we are dissolving it as the revision of textbooks is already over," the CM added.
The government also ordered the police cyber cell to identify the person who circulated the distorted version of the state anthem (Nadageethe) written by Jnanpith awardee Kuvempu on social media. Chakrathirtha was accused of distorting the state anthem at the beginning of the textbook controversy. But later he claimed it was a forwarded message and he only reposted it.
With regard to allegations of belittling Kuvempu's personality and removing his works from the textbooks, the government denied charges saying whatever content the previous Baraguru Ramachandrappa committee had proposed, the same is being retained.
"In fact, the Chakrathirtha committee has inserted 10 prose and poems of Kuvempu in school textbooks as against 7 in textbooks revised by the previous committees," claimed the CM's release.
Earlier in the day, former PM HD Deve Gowda had expressed his disappointment over the Kuvempu controversy and said that if he had the strength, he would have come out on the streets to protest.
