The image of a bare torso on a centuries-old carving has been restored to an Indian school textbook following a furious public backlash against censorship, sources confirm. The controversy erupted earlier this month when publishers of a Class 12 history textbook quietly altered the photograph of a sandstone sculpture from the Khajuraho temples, digitally adding a cloth to cover the chest of a dancing girl. The move was widely condemned as prudish and an affront to India’s cultural heritage.
The original image, depicting a female dancer from the 10th-century UNESCO World Heritage site, has been used in the textbook for years. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), the government body that oversees school curricula, said the alteration was made to “protect the sensibilities of students.” But critics argued that the censorship distorted history and pandered to conservative pressure groups.
In a statement released late Wednesday, NCERT announced it would revert to the uncensored image in future printings. “We have listened to the concerns of the public and experts. The original photograph will be restored in the next edition,” a spokesperson said.
The reversal comes after a week of sustained criticism on social media, where the hashtag #RestoreKhajuraho trended nationally. Historians and educators accused the government of sanitising the past. “This is not about morality. It is about controlling what young people see and think,” said Dr. Alka Patel, a professor of art history at Delhi University. “Khajuraho is famous for its erotic and sensuous sculptures. To cover them up is to erase part of our history.”
The controversy also drew attention to the broader issue of textbook censorship in India. Under the current government, there have been multiple instances of revisions to historical narratives, including changes to descriptions of ancient Hindu rulers and the downplaying of Muslim contributions to Indian culture. Critics see the Khajuraho incident as the latest salvo in a campaign to reshape education along ideological lines.
NCERT officials initially defended the alteration, claiming it was a minor adjustment to avoid distracting students. But the backtracking suggests a recognition that the public won’t tolerate such obvious meddling. “They thought no one would notice,” said Rajesh Kumar, a journalist who first reported the change. “But people are paying attention now.”
The restored image will appear in the next print run of the textbook, scheduled for distribution in July. For now, copies with the censored version remain in schools, but NCERT says it will issue stickers with the original image for those who want to correct their copies manually.
The incident underscores a growing battle over the content of history textbooks, which have become a flashpoint in India’s culture wars. As one teacher put it: “If we cannot show a 1,000-year-old statue as it is, how can we teach the truth about anything?”
