‘Can’t erase facts’: Bratya on NCERT move to omit Mughals from texts
Times of India | 29 April 2025
Kolkata: Bengal education minister Bratya Basu on Monday slammed the NCERT for erasing historical facts from its social science textbook. "While history is open to interpretation, historical facts cannot be erased," Basu said, adding, "One should remember that history repeats itself — so the history somebody chooses to exclude will one day exclude them."
TOI reported on April 28 that all references to Mughals and the Delhi Sultanate had been removed from Class 7 NCERT social science textbook. NCERT officials indicated that the released book — ‘Exploring Society: India and Beyond' — only represents the first part of the revised syllabus, with the second part expected in the coming months. However, they refrained from commenting on whether the omitted content would be part of the yet-to-be-released second part.
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In a statement on X, Basu said, "Class 7 NCERT social science textbooks have removed chapters on the Mughals and the Delhi Sultanate to be replaced by content on ancient Indian dynasties and ‘sacred geography'. Though history is open to interpretation, historical facts cannot be erased. If one writes medieval Indian history excluding the Mughals, it distorts the historicity of that period. One should remember that history repeats itself — the history somebody chooses to exclude will one day exclude them."
This NCERT move follows earlier efforts during the Covid-19 pandemic to streamline the syllabus, where sections on Mughals and the Delhi Sultanate, including detailed accounts of dynasties like those of Tughlaq, Khalji, Mamluk, and Lodi, were trimmed. In the most recent update, all references to these historical periods have been completely removed from the social science textbook.