A day after netizens expressed their shock over the decision of the NCERT to include a chapter by Anti-Hindu Delhi riots accused Harsh Mander in the English textbook of Class XI, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) took cognisance of the matter.
On Monday (April 4), NPCPR Chairman Priyank Kanoongo fired off a letter to the Director of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), questioning its decision to include a story titled ‘Weathering the Storm in Ersama’ by Mander, who is accused of money laundering while running child shelters.
“Upon receiving the complaint, the content of the story has been examined and it has been found that the story contains text that is beyond the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 which is the primary law for children in the country and is hence, outdated as it negates the different provisions of the Act,” the letter emphasised.
It further added, “Also, the narrative of the story is built in a way to suggest that the rescue and welfare work are only carried out by non-government organizations and undermines the country’s mechanism including disaster management agencies and other authorities.”
Priyank Kanoongo said, “Similarly, it seems that the other two stories titled ‘A Home on the Street’ and ‘Paying for his Tea’- given as suggested readings at the end of the chapter also present a similar picture and have been included without cross-checking the present scenario of care and protection of children in the country.”
The NCPCR pointed out that the Juvenile Justice Act was enacted in 2015 while the model rules came into effect in 2016. It stated that the book has been revised 5 times between 2016 and 2021 without referring to the law of the land and without being sensitive to the issue of child protection.
“Also, how the said stories are relevant to the NCF needs to be examined. Therefore. the matter is being forwarded to you for your comments and to take appropriate action in this regard,” it said. Kanoongo had sought the comments of the NCERT Director in this regard and directed him to ensure that no misguiding accounts are made in other chapters of the class textbooks.
The Background of the controversy
On Sunday (April 3), columnist Saket Suryesh shared a screenshot of an NCERT English textbook of Class XI to highlight that he found a story written by Harsh Mander, a person accused of money laundering and inciting violence before the Delhi Riots. The author also sarcastically said that the essay written by ‘brilliant literary person’ Mander was interspersed between “smaller writers” like O. Henry and Oscar Wilde.
The textbook also carried stories written by authors such as Mulk Raj Anand, RK Lakshman, Ruskin Bond, etc. The American writer William Sydney Porter, better known by his pen name O. Henry, and Irish writer Oscar Wilder are considered to be among the greatest short-story writers and playwrights in the world.
Saket Suryesh expressed his shock that the NCERT, the autonomous body that decides on the contents of the textbooks, had decided to include a chapter written by Harsh Mander, a notorious anti-Hindu propagandist close to Congress leader Sonia Gandhi and an accused in the Anti-Hindu riots case.
The screenshot shared by Saket Suryesh showed that NCERT has carried a story – ‘Weathering The Storm In Ersama’, written by Harsh Mander, based on the adventures of a teenager Prashant during his stay at cyclone-hit Odisha.
Another social media user also took a pot shot at NCERT for including a chapter written by a riot-accused. Anand Kumar said it was wonderful to see ‘literary giants’ like Harsh Mander find a place in the English textbooks of NCERT.
