JAIPUR (TIP): The BJP government in Rajasthan changed “old and boring” school curriculum to evoke nationalism, education minister Vasudev Devnani said on Thursday amid a raging controversy over alleged attempts to black out Congress leaders from history books.

The Congress has accused the Vasundhara Raje government of trying to “saffronise” education after references to the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharal Nehru in textbooks were trimmed considerably.

The government denies the charge. Devnani, however, accused the Congress of trying to “blacken history” by striking off “swadeshi” leaders such as Vinayak Savarkar and Deen Dayal Upadhay from textbooks when the party was in power.

Devnani also named a long list of “swadeshi leaders” whose lives and times have been included in the new curriculum.

“In the name of changing curriculum, the Congress removed mentions of freedom fighter Savarkar and humanist Deen Dayal. They even had issues with Ram Lakshman and they went to the extent of removing Mahatma Gandhi’s contribution. Even the battle between Akbar and Maharana Pratap was removed from books,” Devnani said.