"Mughals were brutal and intolerant", "Babur slaughtered entire cities", claims NCERT, Class VIII book says...

In what may be called one more step in the direction of saffronisation of the Indian education system, the National Council of Educational Research and Training has described the reigns of various Mughal emperors as "brutal" and "intolerant" in its class VIII book. According to the Indian Express, the social science book 'Exploring Society: Indian and Beyond', the Indian history of the period from the 13th the 17th century has been introduced. It covers the Delhi Sultanate, the Vijayanagara Empire, the Mughals and the rise of the Sikhs. The NCERT released this week the book for the session of 2025-26. 

Class VII book has no mention of Mughals

Earlier, the council hit the headlines for deleting the Mughal era from history books. Now, it has made a new tactic. It is interesting to note that the old class VII book has no mention of “attacks on temples” and the “brutality” of some Mughal and Sultanate rulers. The NCERT replaced three separate books for History, Geography, and Social and Political Life earlier this year. 

Babur, Akbar, Aurangzeb

Part 1 of the class VII social science book has no reference to the rise of the Delhi sultanate and the Mughal empire. The council introduces students of class VIII to the Delhi Sultanate and the Mughals. The NCERT book describes Babur as a “brutal and ruthless conqueror, slaughtering entire populations of cities”. It finds Akbar’s reign as a “blend of brutality and tolerance”, and it also says that Aurangzeb was "one who destroyed temples and gurdwaras". The book cites “many instances of religious intolerance” during the period.

However, the NCERT told the Indian Express that it had explained the rationale for including accounts of Mughal brutality in a “Note on Some Darker Periods in History”. The note says, “Understanding the historical origin of cruel violence, abusive misrule, or misplaced ambitions of power is the best way to heal the past and build a future where, hopefully, they will have no place."