November 6, 2024
By Rehan Piracha
LAHORE
A Senate panel has recommended that the Federal Ministry of Education issue a directive to provinces to withdraw an Urdu O-level textbook that contains derogatory remarks about Pukhtuns in one of its chapters.
Senator Bilal Ahmed Khan from the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) raised the issue of derogatory remarks in the textbook during the senate proceedings on October 18. The matter was referred to the Senate Standing Committee on Education.
Senator Bilal pointed out that the Urdu textbook, written by Shazia Islam, had used derogatory words for Pakhtuns in an essay on page 374.
“The author in the essay says that the Pakhtuns commit dacoities as a livelihood,” Senator Khan said on the floor, adding that the author further says the Pukhtuns kill their children. He demanded to know which areas of the Pukhtun belt this happened in, and which Pukhtun tribe had killed their children.
“The author should provide evidence about whom the Pukhtuns have robbed or killed as claimed in her book,” he said. The senator pointed out that the author next mentions that the Pukhtuns ‘could not survive without robbing caravans’. Senator Khan questioned where in today’s day and age did Pukhtuns raid caravans in the country?
“(It has been noted that) the author in question had earlier apologised over these notations printed in the textbook, yet the publisher has still not removed them in the newest edition of the textbook, which is still readily available,” he revealed. “The disparaging remarks have hurt the sentiments of the Pukhtun nationality across the country.”
Senator Bilal said that the derogatory content in the textbook left a question mark on the oversight mechanism of the concerned ministry. He urged that the ministry take action against the publisher and the author. The book titled Urdu O-Level Syllabus was published by 92 Publishing House based in Lahore.
Discussion in Standing Committee
On November 5, the Senate Standing Committee on Education discussed the matter in a meeting chaired by Senator Bushra Anjum Butt. The Secretary of Education told the participants of the meeting that action had been initiated to ban the Urdu O-level textbook. The standing committee had been informed that the author, Shazia Islam had submitted a written apology for the mistake in the textbook. The Secretary of Education noted that while language is regulated, the content varies by province.
Senator Bilal expressed frustration over the book’s continued availability in the country. Chairperson Senator Bushra emphasized the federal government’s role in overseeing educational content and called for the publisher and author to attend the next meeting.
She highlighted that such content promotes hate speech and negatively impacts children, and recommending that the Ministry of Education issue a directive to all provinces to withdraw the book from circulation. This action, she stated, would serve as a warning to other writers and publishers against harmful content. She also recommended that the author explain, offer an apology, and be held accountable in the next meeting.