Punjab authorities confiscate textbook over NOC; 'Malala's picture not the problem'

• Punjab Curriculum and Textbook Board spokesperson confirms entire stock of school textbook picked up from a book market in Lahore.
• A social media controversy had suggested it was done for including education activist Malala Yousafzai's picture on a page listing important personalities.
• But the PCTB spokesperson claims book was confiscated for being published without an NOC and not for having Malala's picture.

LAHORE: The Punjab Curriculum and Textbook Board (PCTB) has issued a clarification on why it has confiscated a school textbook after a social media controversy suggested that it was done for including education activist Malala Yousafzai's picture in a list of important personalities.

The PCTB confiscated a social studies book, saying that it was published despite not being issued a no-objection certificate.

A PCTB spokesperson said the entire stock of the book was picked up from a book market in Lahore.

He said it was published by a private publisher without an NOC.

Read more: 'Government’s single national curriculum is like martial law'

A picture of a page inside the book circulating on social media suggests that the book was confiscated for including Malala's picture on an important personalities list.

The PCTB spokesperson, however, denied media reports saying that action against the private publisher was taken for printing a picture of Malala alongside that of 1965 war hero Maj Aziz Bhatti Shaheed in the list of important personalities.

According to a report in Dawn, pictures of some important personalities had been published on page 33 of the book. They included Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, national poet Allama Iqbal, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Liaqat Ali Khan, legendary philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi, Begum Raana Liaquat Ali Khan, Nishan-i-Haider recipient Maj Aziz Bhatti Shaheed and activist Malala Yousafzai.

Last year, the PCTB had banned 100 textbooks being taught in private schools deeming them “anti-national” and “blasphemous”.

According to the banned list obtained by Geo.tv, 17 books were taught to class-I students, 18 were taught in class-II, 19 in class-III, 24 in class-IV, 13 in class-V, 4 in class-VI, three in class-VII, one to class-IX and one to both class-IX and X.

Here’s the list of 100 books banned in Punjab