New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday closed the suo motu proceedings concerning references to “corruption in the judiciary” in an NCERT Class 8 Social Science textbook, after noting that the controversial chapter had been replaced following revisions suggested by an expert panel constituted by the Centre.
A bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana passed the order after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the apex court that textbooks containing the revised chapter were already in circulation.
Taking note of the development, the apex court closed the suo motu proceedings and all consequential action in the matter.
The controversy had arisen over Chapter IV, titled “The Role of Judiciary in Our Society”, in NCERT’s Class 8 Social Science textbook ‘Exploring Society: India and Beyond’, which contained a section referring to “corruption in the judiciary”.
The Supreme Court had taken suo motu cognisance of the issue after concerns were raised over the contents of the textbook and had, on February 26, ordered its immediate nationwide withdrawal and imposed a complete blanket ban on its publication, reprinting and digital dissemination.
The CJI-led Bench had then observed that the references to “corruption in the judiciary” prima facie reflected a “discernible underlying agenda to undermine the institutional authority and demean the dignity of the judiciary”.
The top court had also cautioned that exposing young students to a “biased narrative” at a formative stage could erode the sanctity of the judicial institution in public perception.
At the same time, it had clarified that its intervention was not aimed at stifling legitimate criticism of the judiciary, observing that dissent, deliberation, and rigorous discourse were essential to a vibrant democracy.
The Supreme Court had also issued show-cause notices to the Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education, and NCERT Director, Professor (Dr) Dinesh Prasad Saklani, seeking explanations on why action under the Contempt of Courts Act or other penal provisions should not be initiated against those responsible for introducing the “offending chapter”.
It had also directed the NCERT Director to furnish details of the members of the National Syllabus and Teaching Learning Material Committee who approved the chapter, the textbook development team responsible for drafting it, and the minutes of meetings where the chapter was deliberated and finalised.
During the pendency of the proceedings, NCERT had tendered an “unconditional and unqualified” public apology over the controversial chapter and said that the entire book had been withdrawn. It had also assured that the material concerned would be revised, while reiterating its commitment to maintaining accuracy, sensitivity and responsibility in educational content.
In a subsequent development, the Centre constituted an expert panel to review the contents and suggest revisions. As the revised chapter has replaced the earlier version and the new textbooks are now in circulation, the Supreme Court brought the suo motu proceedings to an end. The apex court had also earlier recalled its direction restricting three academics involved in the preparation of the chapter from participating in academic projects of Central or state universities and public educational institutions.
(IANS)
