Jawaharlal Nehru's name 'removed' from Rajasthan textbook; state minister denies deliberate omission

The "removal" of India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru's name from new textbooks for classes sixth to eight in Rajasthan elicited a strong reaction from the Congress even as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) denied any wrongdoing.

The textbook, according to an Indian Express report, has been written "following a year-long curriculum re­structuring exercise".

According to a NDTV report, the textbook, "Samajik Vigyan", makes no mention of  Nehru as a freedom fighter or as "a leader of Independent India".

The report adds that the textbook does not mention Mahatma Gandhi's assassination at the hands of Nathuram Godse.

The Rajasthan unit of the Congress on Sunday reacted strongly to the move.

State Congress chief Sachin Pilot told IANS on phone: "It's absolutely unacceptable that the BJP is working in a vindictive manner by not even mentioning India's first prime minister in the textbooks."Read More.