Marx and Hitler In, Freedom Fighters Out of Tripura Textbook

Political experts suspect an underhanded attempt to revise history and thwart nationalism.

A picture of the chapter about Hitler in the class 9 history textbook in Tripura. (Photo Courtesy: Sudip Nath)

Government schools run by the Tripura Left front state government will teach Class 9 students the history of Hitler, the Nazis, and the French and Russian revolutions in their history books, while omitting the Indian history of freedom-fighting.

Fight for Independence Less Important Than Russian Revolution?

The book which has been called into question by non-Left parties. (Photo Courtesy: Sudip Nath)

The book, Madhyamik History (IX) (new syllabus of 2016) written by Kalayan Choudhury – former head of the History department in Kolkata’s Maharaja Manindra Chandra College – is the author of the controversial text. Out of 119 pages, 77 elaborate on the history of the French and Russian revolutions, Marx, Lenin, and the rise of Hitler and Nazism.

Mahatma Gandhi and... Cricket?

The decolonisation of cricket is apparently more important than the freedom fight. (Photo Courtesy: Sudip Nath)

There are only a handful of pages devoted to the importance agriculture and indigenous tribal societies. Shockingly, there isn’t a single word describing the struggle of our freedom fighters against the British. Mahatma Gandhi’s name does find mention in the book – not for his struggle for independence, but rather for his views on cricket.

Experts Claim an Attempt to Alter History

The table of contents of the textbook in question. (Photo Courtesy: Sudip Nath)

Dipak Dey, a history teacher, said that textbooks from previous years included the history of Rani Laxmibai, womens’ education pioneer Ram Mohan Roy, and Netaji Subash Chandra Bose... all of whom are conspicuously absent from this year’s edition.

Important concepts like democracy and the Indian Constitution have also been removed.

Political experts and educationists suspect that this is an underhanded attempt to revise history to erase nationalism and the heritage of our freedom fighters.

Also Read: Nehru Omitted from Mumbai University Textbook, Left Party Praised