Class 3 chapter withdrawn after news goes viral
The girl students of Class III in a recognised private school in Bhojpur are taught that rape convict Asaram Bapu is a great sant and a social reformer who is contributing to the progress of the nation. The school in question is Nivedita Girls School, Ara, and the book is Gyan Setu.
Nowhere the girls are told that the so-called godman, now in Jodhpur jail for over five years, was convicted for rape of a minor girl in his ashram.
The Nitish Government, which is in the eye of storm over rapes of inmates of Muzaffarpur shelter home, is obviously embarrassed by the disclosure. State Education Minister Krishna Nandan Prasad Verma said action would be taken against persons responsible for prescribing this book for Class III girls.
“The Education Department will look into this matter though the issue is related to private school,” the Minister said.
After social media highlighted the issue and the related chapter in the book went viral, the school administration hastily withdrew the book published by a Delhi-based premium publication. The private school, recognised by the Government, has about 500 students.
The school principal, Kundan Kumari, took the books from all the students of Class III after the parents of the students protested and complained about the content.
Bhojpur District Education Officer Suryanarain said he had no knowledge that the girls were being taught the life sketch of Asaram Bapu.
School administrator Ajay Singh said that he had already sought explanation from the principal. He said possibly this book was approved when Asaram was not in controversy but admitted that it should have been withdrawn.
Singh may be right, but it’s also equally true that the chapter on Asaram was being taught for the last five years when Asaram was in jail on charges of sexual assaults. It’s shocking that nobody noticed the content in the book till it went viral and forced the authorities to act.
A senior official said the inclusion of a chapter on the life of such a scandalous personality is shocking, but it was a bigger crime that it was not noticed by the teachers all these years.
“This only shows that books are recommended by accepting “commission” and no thought is given to what is taught to the student,” he said.