Rajasthan Govt Drops Class 12 Textbook For 'Glorifying Congress'; Congress Slams RSS-Driven Ideological Agenda

The Rajasthan government has dropped a Class XII textbook allegedly glorifying Congress Prime Ministers. The decision has triggered a political controversy, with the opposition Congress terming it an RSS‑driven “ideological attack” on the state’s education system.

The BJP-ruled government has not only decided to withdraw the textbook Azadi Ke Baad Swarnim Bharat Parts 1 and 2 but also removed the Senior Assistant Director of the Board of Secondary Education, Rajasthan, in connection with its publication.

Around 4.90 lakh copies of the book had been printed, and approximately 80 percent were reportedly distributed across 19,700 schools. However, they have now become scrap, as Education Minister Madan Dilawar announced the decision to drop the book, alleging that the texts, introduced during the previous Congress government, unfairly glorify Congress leaders—including those responsible for the Emergency—while neglecting key national figures.

“These books praise those who suspended the Constitution and undermined democracy,” said Dilawar, questioning the omission of leaders like Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, and Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee.

He also pointed out the lack of mention of key developments in the past 11 years under the BJP-led central government, as well as leaders like former Rajasthan Chief Ministers Bhairon Singh Shekhawat and Vasundhara Raje.

Justifying the withdrawal of the books despite widespread distribution, the minister remarked, “Just because money has been spent printing these books doesn’t mean we should serve poison to our children. We are ready to bear the loss to protect students from misinformation.”

Notably, the book classified as a reference book was first published around 20 years ago and was last updated in 2019 during the Congress regime. It has no mention of major developments like the abrogation of Article 370. Although policy decisions like Swachh Bharat and the implementation of GST are included in some paragraphs, there is no photograph of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Reacting to the decision, Rajasthan Congress President Govind Singh Dotasra strongly condemned the move, calling it a narrow-minded, RSS-driven “ideological attack” on the state’s education system.

“It is not merely a curriculum change, but an attempt to alter the direction of ideological development by imposing RSS ideology and the BJP’s political agenda on students through these books,” said Dotasra, who served as Education Minister when the book was last updated in 2019.