Ambedkar cartoon: row in Parliament, Sibal sorry
12 May 2012 2:29 AM GMT
This is turning out to be a season of rows this session in Parliament. After the controversy over the home minister P Chidambaram's role in the Aircel deal, it was a cartoon dating back to 1960 that disturbed peace in both houses of Parliament. The cartoon in question shows the dalit icon B R Ambedkar and Jawaharlal Nehru and is part of an NCERT book meant for Class XI students.
The immediate fallout of the row was that the NCERT advisors Yogendra Yadav and Suhas Palshikar resigned. They were chief advisors at the political science department of the NCERT.
'It's a travesty to my mind to read a cartoon in such a manner,' said Yadav, explaining his stand. He added that the heated, and not very well-informed, debate in Parliament did not do justice to the responsibility that a democratic society has towards it future generation.
The controversial cartoon depicts Ambedkar sitting on a snail and Nehru standing behind him, brandishing a whip. The text alongside criticises Ambedkar and suggests he went slow on framing the constitution. The cartoon was sketched in 1960 by the cartoonist Shankar, and it has been part of the NCERT books since 2006.
Kancha llaiah, a social thinker who is known for his strong views on the caste system in India, sees the cartoon as a way to humiliate dalits. 'The cartoonist did not understand the historical context. It should not have been put in the textbooks,' he told Millennium Post. He adds that the cartoon depicts Ambedkar being unable to write the constitution of India.
Earlier in the day, both houses in Parliament witnessed stormy scenes on the issue, leading to the human resource development minister Kapil Sibal issuing an apology. He said that he had already directed the NCERT to remove the cartoon on 26 April.
'The text book will not be further distributed. We have great respect for B R Ambedkar. There is no question of maligning him. I was not a minister at that time. As soon as I got to know, I have taken action, and there should be no further distribution of the books. I, however, apologise if it has caused hurt. This is not a political issue,' said Sibal. His ministry has ordered an inquiry into how the cartoon made it to the text book. He said that a panel will be set up to review all NCERT textbooks.
The immediate fallout of the row was that the NCERT advisors Yogendra Yadav and Suhas Palshikar resigned. They were chief advisors at the political science department of the NCERT.
'It's a travesty to my mind to read a cartoon in such a manner,' said Yadav, explaining his stand. He added that the heated, and not very well-informed, debate in Parliament did not do justice to the responsibility that a democratic society has towards it future generation.
The controversial cartoon depicts Ambedkar sitting on a snail and Nehru standing behind him, brandishing a whip. The text alongside criticises Ambedkar and suggests he went slow on framing the constitution. The cartoon was sketched in 1960 by the cartoonist Shankar, and it has been part of the NCERT books since 2006.
Kancha llaiah, a social thinker who is known for his strong views on the caste system in India, sees the cartoon as a way to humiliate dalits. 'The cartoonist did not understand the historical context. It should not have been put in the textbooks,' he told Millennium Post. He adds that the cartoon depicts Ambedkar being unable to write the constitution of India.
Earlier in the day, both houses in Parliament witnessed stormy scenes on the issue, leading to the human resource development minister Kapil Sibal issuing an apology. He said that he had already directed the NCERT to remove the cartoon on 26 April.
'The text book will not be further distributed. We have great respect for B R Ambedkar. There is no question of maligning him. I was not a minister at that time. As soon as I got to know, I have taken action, and there should be no further distribution of the books. I, however, apologise if it has caused hurt. This is not a political issue,' said Sibal. His ministry has ordered an inquiry into how the cartoon made it to the text book. He said that a panel will be set up to review all NCERT textbooks.
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