The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has withdrawn its new Class 8 Social Science textbooks from sale following controversy over a section regarding "corruption in the judiciary", ANI reported on Wednesday.
Concurrently, the Supreme Court initiated suo moto proceedings on the matter. Chief Justice of India Surya Kant emphasised that the court would not permit the institution to be defamed through such educational content.
"I'm fully aware of it. We will wait for a day. This definitely concerns the entire institution. Both bar and bench. I am getting a lot of calls, lots of messages. I'm taking suo moto cognisance of the issue. I will not let anybody, no matter how high up they are, defame the institution," the Chief Justice said.
The issue was brought before a bench led by the CJI by senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Abhishek M. Singhvi. They argued that the curriculum appeared to isolate the judiciary, teaching students about corruption within the legal system as if the problem were non-existent in other public institutions.
"They have left out bureaucracy, politics, etc. Not a word on other sectors. They are teaching as if it only exists in this institution", the lawyers said.
‘A calculated and deep-rooted thing’: CJI Surya Kant
The CJI also said that "it's a calculated and deep-rooted thing. We will not say anything more than that. As head of the institution, I'm aware, I'm already doing something about it".
Previously, reports highlighted that the NCERT’s inclusion of a "corruption in the judiciary" segment represented a major departure from past editions, which traditionally concentrated on the functional structure and constitutional role of the courts.
The updated chapter, titled "The Role of the Judiciary in Our Society," was intended to explain beyond basic court hierarchies and access to justice. Instead, it sought to address modern systemic challenges, specifically citing corruption and the mounting backlog of cases.
"NCERT's Class 8 book includes a section on corruption in the judiciary! What about the massive corruption of politicians, including ministers, public servants, investigation agencies, and why governments? Brush them under the carpet," Kapil Sibal had earlier stated in a social media post on X.
The NCERT’s editorial shift had also faced criticism from Senior Advocate Vikas Singh, President of the Supreme Court Bar Association, who questioned the appropriateness of the decision before the textbook was pulled.
"This is completely shocking," he told ANI.
"Do they have a sub-chapter with regard to the 40% MLAs and MPs who have a serious criminal background? ... This kind of a message, if they want to give, they should give it about these MLAs and MPs... Corruption in the judiciary is far less than what it is in the executive and in politics," Singh said.
