Congress raises dropping of Preamble from NCERT textbooks

NEW DELHI: Opposition Congress party on Wednesday raised in Rajya Sabha the issue of dropping of Preamble to the Constitution from certain NCERT textbooks saying this was an attempt to impose communal ideology on the country – a claim which Union Minister J P Nadda countered saying the government was committed to protecting the constitution.

Raising the issue, Leader of the Opposition and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said Preamble, which is the soul and foundation of the Indian Constitution, used to be published in NCERT textbooks.

The objectives stated by the Preamble are to secure justice, liberty, equality to all citizens and promote fraternity to maintain unity and integrity of the nation, he said and went on to read the debate in Constituent Assembly in November 1948, where it was argued that political democracy in the country should also be made a social democracy.

“Political democracy cannot last unless there lies at the base of it social democracy. What does social democracy mean? It means a way of life which recognizes liberty, equality and fraternity as the principles of life,” he quoted from the debate.