Edit-E-Azam: Editorial cartoons take on NCERT’s ‘revisions’ to textbooks

The Indian Express has a very impactful front page this morning – perhaps one of its most impactful pages since the Emergency.

The lead story by national education editor Ritika Chopra was on NCERT political science textbooks for Class 12 quietly deleting certain sentences on Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination. The purge included sentences like this: “His steadfast pursuit of Hindu-Muslim unity provoked Hindu extremists so much that they made several attempts to assassinate Gandhiji...”

This is hot on the heels of the news of NCERT “modifying” its syllabus and removing chapters on the Mughals from some history textbooks. NCERT’s director said this was part of a “rationalisation process”.

The news sparked a series of posts using one of the oldest, boldest artistic genres to speak truth to power – cartoons.

Don’t forget, cartoonists today are often compelled to self-censor, under pressure not to annoy those in power. Newslaundry is trying to beat back that tide with our weekly column by editorial cartoonist Manjul. Check it out here.