NCERT removes Hitler reference related to Subhas Chandra Bose from Class 8 textbook

• Swatantryaveer Savarkar's contribution to India's freedom struggle included

• Book also mentions that the Congress first opposed Partition and later accepted it

(NCERT stands for the National Council of Educational Research and Training.)

New Delhi – In the revised NCERT textbook Exploring Society? India and Beyond, the reference to Hitler in connection with Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose has been removed. The revised syllabus also includes Swatantryaveer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar’s demand for Swarajya. Major changes have also been made in the chapter India’s Long Road to Independence regarding the Partition of India.

1. New textbook says the Congress had also strongly opposed Partition

The revised textbook states, “The Partition of India was also strongly opposed by the Indian National Congress. Whether accepting Partition was the only option remains a subject of debate even today.”

The earlier sentence stating that “Congress leaders were helpless during Partition because of the prevailing circumstances in the subcontinent” has been removed.

The earlier edition had stated that the British took advantage of the differences between Hindu and Muslim leaders to partition India and that although Mahatma Gandhi and most Congress leaders opposed it, they ultimately accepted it as the only available option.

2. References to Hitler and Nazi ideology removed from the section on Netaji

The wording relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and the formation of the Azad Hind Fauj has also been changed.

The revised textbook now merely states that Netaji sought the support of anti-British forces to raise an army.

The earlier edition had explicitly stated that Netaji had sought assistance from Hitler and described him as a dictator whose racist Nazi ideology and expansionist ambitions led to the Second World War.

All references to Hitler and Nazi ideology have now been removed from the revised edition.

3. Swatantryaveer Savarkar and Swarajya included

While expanding the coverage of India’s freedom struggle, the revised curriculum now includes the contribution of Swatantryaveer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.

The textbook now states that in 1925, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar had also raised the demand for Swarajya.

Action taken following the Supreme Court’s order

Earlier this year, controversy arose over certain remarks in the Class 8 textbook regarding corruption in the judiciary and the pendency of court cases. It was during this controversy, in February, that the debate over the Hitler reference also began.

The matter subsequently reached the Supreme Court, which adopted a strict stand and imposed a complete ban on the printing and digital distribution of the textbook.

Following the Court’s order, NCERT apologised and withdrew the textbooks from the market and digital platforms.