Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan Defends NCERT Textbooks Against Congress Allegations

New Delhi [India], August 7: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan criticized the Congress party on Tuesday, accusing them of spreading lies and confusion. He addressed allegations about the removal of the Preamble from NCERT textbooks, stating, "The Congress party is engaged in spreading lies and confusion. We expect that a person sitting in a responsible position like the Leader of the Opposition should not mislead the House. Modiji's government is committed to the Constitution...They should apologise to the country."

Pradhan clarified during a zero-hour discussion in Parliament that the Leader of Opposition raised issues beyond facts, specifically about the alleged removal of the Preamble from NCERT 6th class textbooks. He said, "Today, during the zero hour, the leader of opposition raised some things that were beyond facts. Quoting a newspaper, he alleged that the topic about the Preamble, which was there in the NCERT 6th class books, has been omitted now. I clarified the matter with the permission of the Speaker of the House."

He further mentioned that the subjects of the Constitution's Preamble, Fundamental Duties, Fundamental Rights, National Anthem, etc., have been included in more books than before. "Recently, the new textbooks for the 6th class have been released. In all the books, the subjects of the Constitution's Preamble, Fundamental Duties, Fundamental Rights, National Anthem, etc have been included in more books than they used to be in the past," he said.

Earlier, Pradhan firmly refuted the allegations that the Preamble of the Indian Constitution has been removed from NCERT textbooks. In a tweet, Pradhan stated that these claims have no basis and emphasized that, under the National Education Policy (NEP), the NCERT has given due importance to various aspects of the Indian Constitution, including the Preamble, Fundamental Duties, Fundamental Rights, and the National Anthem.

Pradhan also criticized those spreading misinformation about the Indian education system, accusing them of playing with the future of children. He argued that the Congress party, inspired by Macaulay's ideology, has always been antagonistic towards India's development and education system. He asserted that the Congress' argument that only the Preamble reflects constitutional values exposes their limited understanding of the Constitution.