Rajasthan Education minister declares Akbar will no longer be taught as ‘great’ in schools

Jaipur, Sep 1 (IANS/WISHAVWARTA) Rajasthan Education Minister Madan Dilawar on Sunday announced that Mughal emperor Akbar will no longer be taught as a great figure in schools. He criticised Akbar, stating that he had plundered the country for years and asserted that no one would be allowed to praise the Mughal emperor as a ‘great personality’ in the future. The Minister made these remarks while speaking during an event to mark the 28th state-level “Bhama Shah Samman Samaroh” at the Vivekananda Auditorium of Udaipur’s Sukhadia University. The Education Minister lamented that Maharana Pratap, who sacrificed everything for the honour and dignity of Mewar, was never given the status of greatness. He highlighted that education is the highest form of duty and that every penny contributed by Bhama Shahs for this purpose would be used appropriately. In January this year, Madan Dilawar referred to Mughal emperor Akbar as “a rapist” and called for the removal of references to him as a “great personality” from school textbooks. His remarks were made in response to discussions about significant revisions to school textbooks following a change in the government. “We don’t need to make any changes in the curriculum, but the contents that make any unethical statements or disrespect great men will be removed. There is a lot of misleading information included about our ancestors such as Veer Savarkar and Shivaji. Those statements will be fixed,” he said during a press conference on January 30. Dilawar further said, “In many textbooks, it was stated that Savarkar was not a patriot. While Akbar is considered a great man, Shivaji is referred to as ‘Pahadi Chuha’, and Maharana Pratap’s role is overshadowed by the role of Akbar. Such statements are not acceptable and will be reviewed.” Meanwhile, the Education Minister on Sunday praised Rajasthan for its tradition of Bhama Shahs, recalling that in 1997, former Chief Minister Bhairon Singh Shekhawat initiated the practice of seeking cooperation from Bhama Shahs. He noted that Rajasthan is a land of sacrifice, austerity, valour, and heroism. He recounted how Bhama Shah donated his entire wealth to Maharana Pratap when the latter had to live in the forests. He concluded by celebrating Rajasthan as a land of great men and heroic deeds, emphasising the inspirational legacy of Maharana Pratap, Bhama Shah, and the tribal leader Govind Guru. —