Excerpts from the holy books of a number of religions will soon be part of the syllabus in Haryana’s government schools. State Education Minister Ram Bilas Sharma said the subject of moral education will be introduced into the curriculum for students from Class VI to XII, at an event on July 5. It will include texts from the Bhagavad Gita, Quran, the Bible and Guru Granth Sahib, The Indian Express reported.

“All religions focus on character building. Texts [from holy books] such as Bhagavad Gita, Quran, the Bible and Guru Granth Sahib have been incorporated into the curriculum. Different textbooks will be prescribed for each class,” the minister said in a statement, which added that the state government had prepared the course “in collaboration with social organisations and educationists”.

Last year, the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Haryana had drawn flak after it announced its plan to include texts from the Bhagavad Gita into school syllabus. The Congress, which is the Opposition party in the state, had said the BJP was trying to “saffronise” education.