Lord Rama back in UP textbooks

NEW DELHI: UP Chief Minister Mayawati is reported to have ordered the revocation of an earlier decision of her government''s Basic Education Council authorising removal of chapters on Ram, Krishna, Shivaji, Savarkar and some other religious and historical personalities from junior school textbooks. Fresh textbooks will now be published after reincorporating the deleted chapters.
Mayawati''s action comes in the wake of angry protests by BJP leaders led by Vinay Katiyar, who could hardly contain their emotions over the missing chapters. "It''s incomprehensible, intolerable," Katiyar told reporters.
The chief minister''s corrective measure may have pacified angry protesters within the BJP camp for the time being but there are at least three questions that still remain unanswered. How could such a major decision to change the content of textbooks be taken by the state basic education council when the BJP is a partner of the state government? Had the council authorities taken the verbal approval of their superiors while recommending the changes? Or else, were they just trying to be more loyal than the queen?
On her part, Mayawati has clarified that neither she nor her government''s basic education minister were informed about the publication of the controversial books. She also explained that while fresh chapters could be incorporated in the text books, it was certainly wrong to have deleted the names.
What had perhaps added poignancy to the anger of the BJP hardliners was that new chapters on B R Ambedkar, Jyotiba Phule were added even as the names of Ram, Krishna and Shivaji were deleted. The CM has now ordered an inquiry. And while doing so, she has reiterated that she respected all great men regardless of their caste, creed and religion.