Mysuru: Even as a circular issued by the Education Department on the celebration of National Constitution Day in schools, which several dalit organisations have termed it as an act of undermining Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, has stirred up a Statewide controversy, Chamarajanagar MP V. Sreenivasa Prasad has sought to clarify on the issue.

Addressing a press meet at a private hotel here this morning, Sreenivasa Prasad maintained that the circular was a goof up on the part of some Education Department officials and neither the BJP Government nor the Primary Education Minister Suresh Kumar has to be blamed for the goof up. 

Stating that he immediately called up Suresh Kumar when the controversy raged over the circular, Sreenivasa Prasad said that the Minister told him that the department had outsourced the publication of a handbook on the Constitution to a private agency. But  some officials of the department had uploaded it on the department website even before editing it and bringing it to the notice of the Minister or the Principal Secretary of the Department. Once the flaws in the circular was noticed, the government withdrew the circular  and suspended three Directors of the Education Department holding them responsible for the fiasco, he said, while stressing that the State Government nor the Minister were not in any way responsible for the circular, which allegedly misrepresented the role of the Father of the Constitution Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.

Dismissing the allegations that the BJP is sending a wrong message to the society by saying that Dr. Ambedkar did not compile the Constitution alone, Prasad urged  Dalit organisations to refrain from staging protests over the issue as the government has withdrawn the circular.

Maintaining that the President and the Prime Minister of India have high regard for Dr. Ambedkar, the MP appealed  DSS and other associations not to get provoked and stage stirs, as the issue is a closed chapter now.

When asked whether the Opposition will target the government on the issue, Prasad said that the BJP Government has the blessings of the people and MPs and MLAs of the party were elected by the people and not nominated. 

Maintaining that the people’s representatives of the party were functioning in a responsible manner, Prasad rejected the Opposition claims that the BJP had neglected Dalit communities and other marginalised sections of the society.

Referring to the fall of the coalition Government, Prasad said that it was the irresponsible attitude of former CM Siddharamaiah that led to the collapse of the JD(s)-Congress Coalition Government and the BJP had no role in it. 

Lashing out at Siddharamaiah for his arrogance, he squarely blamed the non cooperation of the former CM in the functioning of the co-ordination committee, which did not have the then JD(S) State President A.H. Vishwanath as a member.

Expressing confidence that the BJP would win most of the 15 Assembly segments going to the by-polls on Dec.5, Prasad said that he will accompany Vishwanath when he files his nomination papers at Hunsur on Nov.18 and also campaign for him . 

When his attention was drawn to Vishwanath’s statement  yesterday that it was Sreenivasa Prasad who brought him to the BJP, the MP was evasive and blamed the Congress and  JD(s) for ill-treating their legislators, which forced some of them to quit their seats.