The minister said the aim was to "bring objectivity and truth to our books rather than hate material or terror tales."

By Asif Farooqi, IOL Correspondent

ISLAMABAD, May 4 (IslamOnline.net) – Pakistan is set to re-write curricula taught at state-run schools, which contain anti-India and anti-Hindu material.

"We are doing it with a conviction, and that is, to bring objectivity and truth to our books rather than hate material or terror tales," Pakistani Education minister Zubeda Jalal has told IslamOnline.net.

"There is a certain degree of misstatement of facts related to for example how our country came into being, which needs to be ratified," she added.

The minister said the review of curricula is done regularly, denying reports that the county has given in to any "foreign pressures".

The government has already set up a committee, headed by the education minister, to review the curricula taught at various levels, especially those books which relate with history, religion and social sciences.

Now the government has moved to "make the history books more realistic".

"The material being taught at our schools fills the hearts and minds of the students with hatred against Hindus. It gives a wrong picture of the independence movement," says A.H. Nayyar, a scholar whose curricula proposals are being considered by Jalal’s committee.

Nayyar believes that the changes in the books were made in the period of General Zia Ul Haq in the eighties, accusing Zia of bringing intolerance and religious-based hatred in the curriculum of students.

"According to our books, Hindus of India are to be blamed for the bloodshed and genocide of Muslims in the subcontinent at the time of partition," Nayyar said, adding that this was not the whole truth and needed to be rectified.

External Pressure 

But there are many who believe the government is amending the curricula, bowing to international pressure.

"The same changes which are now objectionable were made in the syllabus on the instructions from the U.S.," argues professor Dushka Saiyid, the head of the history department in Quaid e Azam University.

She said the changes were only made to toe the U.S. line because the U.S. government wanted to omit subjects like "jihad".

"How can you do away with Islamic heroes and concept of Jihad and Shahadat from the syllabus of the country where people actually have faith in them?" Saiyid wondered.

She said it is a fact that Hindus played politics against Muslims under the British mandate.

"There were problems between Hindus and Muslims at that time as there are problems now."

Pakistan and Indian had fought three wars since independence in 1947, two of them over Muslim-majority Himalayan region of Kashmir.

Their armies routinely exchange fire along the 750 kilometer (465 miles) Line of Control, which divides Kashmir between both countries, and their 230 kilometer (143 mile) international border.

On May 2, 2003, they restored full diplomatic ties to settle half a century of disputes "for the economic and social betterment of their peoples.

The jerky start to peace moves led to the resumption of a bi-weekly bus service and the restoration of full diplomatic links.

Both countries agreed last February to a ‘roadmap’ of four-month discussions on disputes including the issue of Kashmir.