A controversy erupted over the Madhya Pradesh government's decision to include life sketches and ideologies of Rashtriya Swayasevak Sangh (RSS) founder Dr. K.B. Hedgewar and Jan Sangh leader Deendayal Upadhayaya in the foundation course of undergraduate medical course (MBBS) from the current session.
The Congress has hit out at the BJP government for trying to impose its ideologies and agenda on everyone and on every sector, including education.
Former chief minister and MP Congress chief Kamal Nath has asked the BJP to clarify about the contribution of RSS and Jan Sangh leaders in freedom struggle and consequent development and progress of the country.
Hedgewar and Upadhayaya’s life sketch and ideologies have been included in the topic ‘medical ethics’, which is part of the MBBS foundation course, along with other prominent personalities like Swami Vivekananda, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and ancient medical experts like Maharshi Charak and Acharya Sushrut.
The National Medical Council (NMC) decides the course content of MBBS in the way of different topics to be included in the course, but the state medical education department has the prerogative to decide about the particular lectures as part of the decided topic. It is with this authority that the MP medical education department has decided to include the aforementioned lectures in the foundation course of first semester of MBBS.
State Medical Education Minister Vishvas Sarang said ethics is part of the course content suggested by NMC and therefore the state government has decided to include life and views of such personalities who have participated in freedom struggle, worked to keep the Indian independence intact and those who have worked to forward the culture and heritage of the country. “We want our future doctors to have value-based personalities and therefore we have decided to teach them the life and views of these personalities. Great people like Dr Hedgewar, who was himself a doctor and made a great contribution to freedom struggle and to promote the culture and heritage of the country, Pandit Upadhayaya whose concepts of integral humanism and antyodaya (rise of last person) has caught upon the entire world, Dr Ambedkar who gave us the great constitution, Swami Vivekananda who took the concept of India to global level and the ancient medical experts like Maharshi Charak and Acharya Sushrut have been included in the course for this purpose,” Sarang added.
However, in a series of tweets, Kamal Nath raised questions on the intention of the BJP government. “Now, MBBS students will be taught views of RSS and Jan Sangh founders. Before this, the BJP included people of their own ideology in the matter related to 75th anniversary celebration of Indian independence,” he tweeted.
He further said the entire country knows that the BJP people have no role in the freedom struggle and golden history of the country, but the BJP intentionally alters history to glorify its own people and to impose its ideology. “This (MBBS course alteration) is also part of that agenda. BJP should clarify what worthwhile work have these people done during the freedom struggle and for the development of the country so that their work should be made known to the students of the holy profession of medicine? BJP has been trying to impose its ideology on the education sector for years and this is also part of that agenda,” Nath tweeted.
The former chief minister further said there are several great personalities who have made important contributions to the freedom struggle and development of the country, and it would be better if the BJP government would make students aware of their views in an unbiased manner. It should not try to impose a particular ideology and agenda just for fulfilling its political objectives, he added.
Sarang reacted saying all such issues cause stomachache to the Congress. Whenever there are moves to conserve Indian culture and promote ancient tradition, Congress has a problem. The Congress also has a problem with creation of good citizens with good values, because it wants to run only its own agenda, he claimed.
