Adolf Hitler found a prominent place in a children’s book on world leaders, known for spending their lives for the betterment of their country and people, after an Indian publisher included his name in the list. The publisher has put Hitler on the same pedestal as Mahatama Gandhi, Barack Obama and Nelson Mandela, reported The New York Times.
The book has been published by Pegasus imprint of India’s B. Jain Publishing Group. ‘Leaders’ puts spotlight on 11 leaders in the world who have tried to make the world “better”. The description of the book as on Pegasus website puts it as a compilation of all the men and women who “inspire you”.
The book cover also features Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Mynammar’s leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who, in the past, has received a lot of criticism for ignoring the plight of Rohingyas in Mynammar.
According to The New York Times, Rabbi Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, an international Jewish human rights organisation, said in a statement, “Dedicated to the betterment of countries and people? Adolf Hitler? This description would bring tears of joy to the Nazis and their racist neo-Nazi heirs.”
The Simon Wiesenthal Center has also called for the Indian publisher to remove “Leaders” from circulation.
Clarifying the stand of the publication on the issue, Annshu Juneja, a publishing manager at the imprint said, “We are not talking about his way of conduct or his views or whether he was a good leader or a bad leader but simply portraying how powerful he was as a leader,” reported The New York Times.
The report points out that in parts of Asia, atrocities committed in Nazi Germany is sometimes poorly understood and Hitler is often glorified.
The book “Leaders” was published in the year 2016 and is still available for sale online.
(With inputs from The New York Times.)
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