Supreme Court Disturbed By NCERT Rewriting Chapter On Judicial Corruption; Bars Writers From Curriculum Projects

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said that it was "disturbed" by the stand of the National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) that the controversial chapter on judicial corruption in Class 8 Social Sciences Book has been "duly rewritten" and that the revised chapter will be incorporated in the textbooks for the 2026-27 academic year.The Court was aghast to note that even after it expressed its strong objections to the chapter in the suo motu case, the NCERT has decided to include the chapter in a rewritten form. The fact that the chapter has been rewritten was disclosed in the affidavit filed by the NCERT Director, Professor Dinesh Prasad Saklani, who was earlier issued a notice to show cause as to why criminal contempt proceedings should not be initiated. The Court was disappointed to note that the Director's affidavit did not disclose the "alleged domain experts" who had rewritten the chapter and approved its incorporation in the next curriculum.Following the Court ventilating its objections, Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta assured that the chapter will not be reprinted without the review by a high-level committee to be constituted by the Central Government.The bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi directed the Government of India to constitute a committee of experts, which preferably includes one former Judge, one academician and one renowned practitioner of law. Without the approval of the committee, the revised chapter should not be published."We direct that if at all chapter IV has been re-written, the same shall not be published unless it is approved by a committee of domain experts," the Court directed.Court bars members involved in making the chapter from other Govt projectsThe NCERT Director's affidavit further revealed that the controversial chapter was prepared under the supervision of a visiting professor Mr. Michel Danino. Ms Suparna Diwakar and Mr Alok Prasanna Kumar were also involved in the process. As per the process, the chapter had to be approved by the National Syllabus and Teaching Learning Material Committee (NSTMC). However, the chapter was only digitally circulated to some of the members of the NSTMC.Observing that Mr. Michel Danino, Ms Suparna Diwakar and Mr Alok Prasanna Kumar do not have any reasonable knowledge about the judiciary, the Court directed that they should not be associated with any other project."At the outset, we have no reason to doubt that Professor Michel Danino, along with Ms Diwakar and Mr Alok Prasanna Kumar, either does not have reasonable knowledge about the Indian judiciary or they deliberately and knowingly misrepresented the facts in order to project a negative image of the Indian judiciary before students of class 8 who are at an impressionable age. There is no reason why such persons be associated in any manner with the preparation of curriculum or finalisation of textbooks for the next generation. We direct the Government of India and all states/UTs/Universities etc. to disassociate 3 of them forthwith and not to assign any responsibility which involves public funds. This order shall be subject to their approaching this court for modification with an explanation. "The Court further directed that the Union must revisit the composition of NSTC, especially those to whom the offending chapter was shown. However, the Court clarified that it was not making any adverse comment on any such member. Action ordered against social media postsExpressing concern over irresponsible content circulating on media, the Supreme Court directed the Government of India to identify the websites involved and the persons operating them, and to furnish their complete details before the Court so that appropriate action can be taken. Observing that the law must take its course against “mischief-mongers”, the Court said it firmly believed in “catching the bull by the horns.” The Chief Justice of India added that the Court would not spare those responsible even if they were “hiding outside the country.”At the same time, the Court clarified that it was not opposed to any legitimate criticism of the judiciary."We hasten to reiterate para 9 of our earlier order to state that interim directions or today's orders are not intended to prevent any healthy and legitimate criticism of the institutional functioning of the judiciary. If the judiciary, like any other institution, is suffering from deficiencies, and an expert committee highlights them, it would be a welcome step for future generations," the Court observed.Courtroom exchangeAs soon as the matter was taken, Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta informed the Court that the NCERT has published a public apology for publishing the chapter and that the officers are present before the Court. The SG further stated that the NCERT has decided to review and revisit the chapters of all classes, and not just Class 8.The Chief Justice observed that it...

Supreme Court Disturbed By NCERT Rewriting Chapter On Judicial Corruption; Bars Writers From Curriculum Projects

Debby Jain

The Court observed that the persons who prepared the chapter either lacked reasonable knowledge on the subject or had deliberately attempted to project a negative image of the judiciary.

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