New Delhi: A new and highly controversial module released by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) is set to be taught to students in grades six through twelve. The module, which has already ignited a political firestorm, claims that the Indian National Congress was to blame for the Partition of India.
In an unprecedented move, the new curriculum places the blame for the 1947 division not on a single individual, but on a "confluence of three forces." According to the module, Muhammad Ali Jinnah propagated the idea of partition, the Congress accepted the demand, and Lord Mountbatten implemented it. This revisionist perspective has drawn sharp criticism and a strong political backlash, with the Congress party demanding the immediate withdrawal and destruction of the material.
Unpacking the Claims: Blame and British "Clean Chit"
The NCERT module goes a step further, asserting that the Partition is directly responsible for the ongoing Kashmir issue. It alleges that "since then, the neighboring country has been using this problem in various ways to put pressure on India."
Adding to the controversy, the module appears to give a "clean chit" to the British. It claims that the British government actually tried to keep India united, even proposing a Dominion Status, but the Congress party rejected this offer. The curriculum also details the demands of Jinnah's Muslim League, as laid out in the 1940 Lahore Resolution.
Congress Demands Module Be "Burned," Points to Hindu Mahasabha
The Congress party has vehemently condemned NCERT's new interpretation. Party spokesperson Pawan Khera stated, "Burn this module because it doesn't contain a shred of truth. The Partition happened because of the collusion between the Hindu Mahasabha and the Muslim League."
Khera went on to accuse the RSS of being the "biggest danger to the country." He claimed that the Hindu Mahasabha first proposed the idea of Partition in 1938, a demand that Jinnah later echoed in 1940.
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