Minister for Education Syed Altaf Bukhari Saturday said the army chief General Bipin Rawat should confine his role to security related issues. He said he shouldn't comment on things, which are beyond his constitutional mandate.
Talking to reporters in Srinagar, Bukhari said Army Chief’s assertion that the teachers in Jammu and Kashmir were teaching two maps to the students and there was no need for separate map for the State, is ‘ an unfair and unacceptable comment’.
He saud the Army chief is a respected and well decorated officer of this country. He is a professional and there is no doubt on his professionalism, he added. He said he doesn’t think he was an educationist to give sermons on education.
Bukhari said that he does not think any society will accept sermons on education from non academicians. “I would welcome sermons from academicians on how to run the education system. Education is subject on State list and this is not on concurrent list and falls well within the domain of the State,” the Minister for Education said.
He added: “We know how to run our education system. The constitution of India has given different roles to different people. I would be glad if they (Army) do what they are supposed to do and leave us to do what we are supposed to do.”
He said that J&K has a capable chief minister here who is there to supervise and take review of different departments. “If she finds any reasons for improvement she can pinpoint and order for corrective measures as well.”
Advising the Army Chief to exercise restrain while commenting on issues other than the security related matters, Bukhari said: “I think those sermonizing us should do their duties in a more professional manner so as to ease the sufferings of a common man in Jammu and Kashmir.”
He said the army has its job they should focus on it. He said if they do their work well a lot of this problem of separatism would be addressed”
Earlier Army Chief Bipin Rawat had stated that in the schools in Jammu & Kashmir, what teachers are teaching should not be taught. "In schools in J&K, there can be seen 2 maps, one of India another of J&K. Why do we need a separate map for J&K? What does it teach the children?" he said.
The Minister earlier inaugurated a two-day annual book exhibition at SP Model Higher Secondary School.
The exhibition was organized by Directorate of School Education, Kashmir in which variety of books were put on sale and a total number of sixty stalls were set up by various publishers and booksellers from various parts of Kashmir.
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Speaking on the occasion, Altaf Bukhari said that book reading is a good habit and through this book exhibition, “we are trying to go back to the habit of book reading which is diminishing in this modern world full of technological innovations.”
