PUNE: Except for Mahatma Gandhi, the BJP-led Union government has removed all Congress stalwarts including Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi from history textbooks, senior leader P Chidambaram claimed here on Friday.
Speaking before a small group of local Congress workers at the Congress Bhavan here, the former finance minister also said the Grand Old Party is going through "introspection", which will throw up "solutions".
"Around 50 per cent of people (in the country) are under the age of 25. If you ask them about Jawaharlal Nehru or Indira Gandhi, they do not know. They were born after Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated. How will they know about Rajiv Gandhi or Indira Gandhi?
"Earlier, some textbooks used to have (chapters on them) but now this government is removing all the chapters from the textbooks. They got only Mahatma Gandhi left...Jawaharlal Nehru, everybody is removed," Chidambaram said.
In apparent reference to ongoing rumblings within the Congress following a string of electoral setbacks, he said the party is "going through introspection".
"And I think the introspection will throw up solutions. At least you are part of government in Maharashtra...It is absolutely important that the organization is strengthened," he added.
It is not enough to have only generals, major generals, brigadiers and colonels but what is needed is foot soldiers, the senior Congress leader said.
"Without the foot soldiers, the army is not going to win the battle. It is foot soldiers who win the battles," said Chidambaram.
Stating that young people must be encouraged, Chidambaram said if Jawaharlal Nehru could hoist the flag and move the resolution for `Purna Swaraj' (declaration of the independence of India) in Lahore, and become Congress president in 1929-30, why can't a 40-year-old become the district Congress committee president.
He also said that attention must be paid to booth committees, ward committees, village committees and block committees.
"Without block committee, we can not build first floor, second floor...what we need is the foundation at the ground floor," he said.
"We must give way to young people. How can it be that when we were young, we were clever, when we became old, the other young are not clever. How is it possible," he quipped.