Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday justified the decision of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) to introduce a chapter on the Emergency in Social Science textbooks.
Pradhan said that NCERT had done the right thing. Future generations should know, read and understand the dark deeds of the Emergency.
He said that it was the right decision to prevent such a situation from occurring again in the future.
The Union Education Minister was speaking to the media on the sidelines of a function held in Chandigarh to mark the anniversary of the imposition of the Emergency in India. NCERT has, for the first time, introduced the topic of the Emergency in textbooks.
On the NEET re-examination, the Education Minister said that the examination held on June 21 was conducted successfully. There were people who wanted to instil fear in the minds of students, but they have not succeeded. Students have not supported them. More than 20 lakh candidates appeared for the examination. Those who wanted to create an atmosphere of anarchy were left feeling dejected.
On the question of the video controversy related to the Punjab Chief Minister, Pradhan said that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann should resign on moral grounds, as the matter is deeply religious in nature and the issue is beyond politics.
He said that there are elements in society who are frustrated and cannot bear to see the nation move forward.
Earlier, workers of the Youth Congress and NSUI also staged protests before the event, demanding the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan. Police stopped the workers, who were raising slogans against the paper leak incidents. Barricades were installed on both sides of the roads in Sector 18, Chandigarh, to prevent the protesters from moving forward.
