COIMBATORE: A cartoon allegedly ridiculing late Dr Ambedkar in one of the books of the Central Board of Secondary Education has sparked protests in the city on Thursday. The cadre of Aathi Tamilar Peravai attempted to block the trains at the Coimbatore Junction condemning the Centre and the Union Human Resources Development Minister Kapil Sibal over the issue. The police rounded up the protestors and arrested as many as 23 of them.
The cadre said that the cartoon in the 11th standard social sciences book was defamatory. The cartoon had shown Ambedkar astride on a snail and Jawaharlal Nehru standing behind brandishing a whip. The text in the book was also critical of Ambekar stating that he delayed the process of framing the
Constitution and worked on it at ‘a snail’s pace’. “We want the cartoon and the content be removed from the book. Union Min ister Kapil Sibal should take responsibility for this and we condemn the attitude of the Centre towards the Dalit leader,” said Kothavaadi Rasan, district president of the organisation.