The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : UDF firm on withdrawal of textbook

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Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

UDF firm on withdrawal of textbook

Special Correspondent

Photo: S. Mahinsha

Protest: Leader of the Opposition Oommen Chandy addressing a Congress dharna in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday. –

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Congress and the United Democratic Front (UDF) on Friday put pressure on the State government to withdraw the controversial Class VII textbook and the teachers’ handbook. They also demanded the suspension from service of police personnel who had “overstepped” their brief while handling the agitation by Congress students’ and youth organisations, and necessary amendments to the education policy.

Senior Congress leaders, including party office-bearers and MLAs, held a three-hour dharna in front of the Secretariat. A hartal was observed in Thrissur town in protest against the attack by the police on Congress MLA T.N. Prathapan during an agitation by the Kerala Students Union (KSU) on Thursday, while the KSU enforced its ‘education bandh’ across the State.

The UDF officially demanded the withdrawal of the Class VII textbook and declared that the students’ stir would not be withdrawn until the government took affirmative action. UDF convener P.P. Thankachan said last year’s textbooks should be re-introduced and new textbooks should be prepared only after proper discussion.

Mr. Thankachan demanded action against the Circle Inspectors of Police of Alappuzha North and South for their “culpability” in the CPI(M)-DYFI attack on the Alappuzha district Congress Committee office. He sought disciplinary action against the police personnel who had assaulted Mr. Prathapan, disregarding the directives of superior officer.

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president Ramesh Chennithala, who inaugurated the Secretariat dharna, said several KSU workers had suffered head injuries in the attack by the police. He alleged that special orders had been given to the police to resort to violent action. Mr. Chennithala said the CPI(M) had several other platforms to propagate its ideology. But, it chose to tamper with textbooks in a bid to boost its appeal among the young generation.

Referring to Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan’s statement that the protesters were carrying out a “naxalite model of agitation,” Leader of the Opposition Oommen Chandy sought to know whether intruding into the Secretariat and shouting slogans constituted such a model of agitation, and how the government would classify the attack on the Alappuzha DCC office.

He said the government had made lathicharge an agenda because it wanted to divert public attention from its failures.

K. Karunakaran, who also spoke, said the government was “playing with fire in attempting to suppress student protests.” He said Mr. Achuthanandan had once again proved that he could not be Chief Minister as he had failed to carry his Cabinet along with him.

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