Recently, I came across a cartoon titled “History for Peace” depicting a student studying a book called “History of India – Revised Edition.” The room is illuminated by a table lamp labelled “NCERT” (National Council of Educational Research and Training). Both the book and the lamp are saffron-coloured. The text below reads: “Bapu died peacefully on January 30, 1948, with God’s name on his lips. A truly blessed life.” This powerful cartoon is a classic example of historical distortion. It indirectly suggests that Mahatma Gandhi (Bapu), the Father of the Nation, died a natural death, omitting the crucial fact that he was assassinated by Nathuram Godse, a Hindu fanatic.
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Distortion of history is not new in India. Over the past decade, it has been discussed and debated numerous times in mainstream and social media. Recently, the controversy surrounding the revised NCERT textbooks has been widely covered, following the threat by academics Yogendra Yadav and Suhas Palshikar of taking legal action against the NCERT for publishing new textbooks under their names without consent. “Both of us do not want the NCERT to hide behind our names to pass on to students such textbooks of political science that we find politically biased, academically indefensible and pedagogically dysfunctional,” the letter said.
However, NCERT director Dinesh Prasad Saklani defended the revisions on the grounds that an “expert committee felt that mentioning a few (riots) selectively is not good. Why should we teach about riots in school textbooks? We want to create positive citizens, not violent and depressed individuals.” He also mentioned that the changes in the textbooks align with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Saklani seems to have conveniently forgotten that these revisions go against the NEP 2020 objective of “enhancing critical thinking among students.”
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This is not the first time that the NCERT has faced controversy. It received criticism for reducing the focus on Mughal history while increasing coverage of ancient Hindu history and the Vedic periods. Additionally, there was backlash for diminishing the content related to the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi and the role of his assassin, Nathuram Godse.
In this context, it is crucial to analyse the importance of accurate historical representation. Historical negationism differs from historical revisionism: the former distorts history, while the latter corrects it through rationale, evidence, and reinterpretation. However, if distortion is permitted under the guise of revisionism, it risks glorifying the falsification of history while vilifying accurate historical accounts.
Anti-history
There is no such thing as good or bad history; accurate history is simply history. Manufactured narratives and myths constitute anti-history or pseudo-history. While the ideal of history is to provide an accurate and objective account of past events, pseudo-history involves promoting alternative historical accounts that lack credible evidence or scholarly consensus. Anti-history can take forms like denialism, revisionism, propaganda, and myth-making.
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Accurate history serves as the foundation upon which societies build their identities, values, and future. Understanding the true events of the past allows societies to learn from both previous mistakes and successes. Presenting historical facts without distortion encourages students to think critically about the past, grasp the complexities of historical events and promotes cultural awareness and tolerance.
Distorted history perpetuates stereotypes and justifies unjust practices and perpetuates errors and misconceptions about the world. Creating narratives based on myths and presenting them as historical facts can undermine historical integrity and impact society. If historians, academics, educators, and students do not actively oppose these distortions, falsehoods may become entrenched in public consciousness.
Measures
The distortion of history in textbooks, driven by political agendas, is a critical issue with significant implications for education. Here are a few suggestions to improve the quality of history textbooks:
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- Ensure that history textbooks are authored by educators without political affiliations to provide objective and unbiased perspectives and maintain the credibility and accuracy of historical content.
- Implement a rigorous review process involving reputable academics and historians to ensure that textbooks are comprehensive, balanced, and free from ideological biases.
- Require proper justification for any revisions to enhance transparency and accountability and ensure changes are based on scholarly evidence and not political influence.
- Ensure that authors and reviewers represent all sections of society to capture the multifaceted history of India, including the experiences and contributions of various communities.
- Encourage the media to publish well-researched articles on revised textbooks and bring public attention to changes to promote informed discussion and scrutiny of revisions.
- Media groups should organise debates on textbook revisions and encourage healthy criticism to ensure broader engagement with content and foster a more informed and critical society.
- Encourage educational institutions to organise seminars and talks on the importance of improving history textbooks so that teachers are aware of issues such as historical negationism, distortion of historical records, and historical revisionism.
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The present is possible because of the past. An accurate account of the past paves the way for a wonderful present and a beautiful future.
Views expressed are personal
The writer is an ELT resource person and education columnist. rayanal@yahoo.co.uk