Removing Bhagat Singh's name from textbook is insult to martyr: Arvind Kejriwal

Image credit: ANI

New Delhi: Hitting out at the BJP government in Karnataka over reports about removal of a lesson on Bhagat Singh from a school textbook, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday (May 17) said it's an insult to the sacrifice made by the iconic freedom fighter, and demanded a roll back of the decision. Taking to Twitter, the AAP national convenor said the country will not tolerate such insult to its martyrs, and asked the BJP why "its people" hate Bhagat Singh so much.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann also slammed the BJP over the issue and said the saffron party's hatred for Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh has come out in the open before everyone.

The reaction of the two chief ministers came a day after some organisations, including All-India Democratic Students Organisation (AIDSO) and All-India Save Education Committee (AISEC), claimed that the Karnataka government has omitted a lesson on Bhagat Singh and included a speech by RSS founder Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in a revised Kannada textbook for students of class X.

"Why do BJP people hate Amar Shaheed Sardar Bhagat Singh Ji so much? Removal of Sardar Bhagat Singh Ji's name from school books is an insult to the sacrifice of the amar shaheed," Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi.

"The country will not tolerate such humiliation of its martyrs at all. The BJP government will have to take back this decision," he added.

बीजेपी के लोग अमर शहीद सरदार भगत सिंह जी से इतनी नफ़रत क्यों करते हैं?

स्कूल की किताबों से सरदार भगत सिंह जी का नाम हटाना अमर शहीद की क़ुर्बानी का अपमान है।

देश अपने शहीदों का ये अपमान बिल्कुल बर्दाश्त नहीं करेगा। BJP सरकार को ये फ़ैसला वापस लेना होगा।https://t.co/zbFG5EAtnT — Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) May 17, 2022

Tweeting in Hindi and Punjabi, Mann said a wave of patriotism runs over even today after reading about Bhagat Singh and the BJP trembles out of fear with this spirit of patriotism among youth.

"BJP's hatred for Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh ji has come out in front of everyone. Even today, a wave of patriotism runs among the youth after reading (about) Sardar Bhagat Singh, who lit the flame of revolution by making the supreme sacrifice for the country at a young age. BJP's soul trembles out of fear with this spirit of patriotism," the Punjab chief minister said on the micro-blogging site.

The Aam Aadmi Party called the removal of the chapter on Bhaghat Singh from the Kannada textbook "shameful" and demanded that the Karnataka government restore the lesson in the school textbook.

"SHAMEFUL. BJP's Karnataka govt REMOVES chapter on Bhagat Singh ji from School Books. Why does BJP hate Shaheed-E-Azam Sardar Bhagat Singh ji so much? BJP must take back this decision. India will not tolerate such humiliation of our freedom fighters," the party tweeted from its official Twitter handle.

Karnataka Primary and Secondary Education Minister B C Nagesh has defended the inclusion of a speech by Hedgewar in a revised Kannada textbook for students of class X.

Nagesh has said the textbook does not contain anything about Hedgewar or RSS, but only his speech on what should be an inspiration to people, especially the youth, and that those who have raised objections have not gone through the textbook.