Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Muslim bodies seek recall of textbook

Thiruvananthapuram: Representatives of 12 Muslim organisations, led by the Indian Union Muslim League, on Monday, met Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan and Education Minister M. A. Baby and demanded the withdrawal of the controversial class 7 social science textbook.

In separate memorandums submitted to the Chief Minister and the Education Minister, the leaders of these organisations said that nothing short of the withdrawal of the textbook was acceptable. If the government failed to respond positively to the demand, the proposed Kozhikode convention on July 5 would announce agitations.

The memorandum said that attempts to teach social science to further a particular ideology, instead of propagating democratic and secular values and social ties in the context of historical facts, were unjustifiable. It demanded the reconstitution of the curriculum committee with adequate representation to experts and scholars belonging to all sections and appointment of a textbook review committee to ensure that such incidents was not repeated.

At a press conference after meeting, P.K. Kunhalikutty, general secretary of Indian Union Muslim League, and other leaders said that the Chief Minister had promised to examine the matter, besides discussing the issue with the Education Minister. The Education Minister, on the other hand, informed them that the issue would be discussed in the Left Democratic Front committee and the Cabinet.

Mr. Kunhalikutty said that the delegation had succeeded in convincing the authorities about the seriousness of the issue. He alleged that there was a conscious attempt to propagate atheism through the textbook prescribed for children.

The memorandum recalled the assurance given by the Education Minister to the coordination committee of Muslim organisations at a meeting on January 6 that sufficient care would be taken while preparing the textbooks.

In reply to a question on the show of unity by the Muslim organisations, Mr. Kunhalikutty said that the unity was issue-based. Apart from those of the league, the delegation included the leaders of Samastha (E.K. Aboobacker Musaliar); Samastha (A.P .Aboobacker Musaliar); the Dhakshina Kerala Jamath-ul-Ulema; the Kerala Nadvathul Mujahideen; the Kerala Nadvathul Mujahideen (Madavoor); the Jamat-e-Islami; the Kerala State Jamath-ul-Ulema; the Kerala Muslim Education Association; the Muslim Education Society; the Muslim Students Society; and the Kerala Arabic Teachers Federation.

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