The Supreme Court on Thursday imposed a blanket ban on the NCERT Class 8 textbook that includes a chapter on ‘corruption in the judiciary’, ordering the seizure of all physical copies and the takedown of digital versions.
According to reports, the Supreme Court issued notices to the Secretary of School Education, the Ministry of Education, and the NCERT Director Dr. Dinesh Prasad Saklani, asking them to show cause why action under the Contempt of Courts Act or any other law should not be taken against them.
It has imposed a complete ban on further publication, re-printing or digital dissemination of the book.
The three-judge Bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, called it a “deep-rooted conspiracy against the judiciary”, and called for compliance reports in two weeks.
“It is fundamentally wrong to expose students to biased misconceptions at this tender age,” the CJI said.
It added that if allowed to go unchecked, this will erode the sanctity of judicial office in the estimation of public at large and within the minds of youth.
Also Read: Supreme Court takes suo motu cognisance of NCERT textbook section on ‘corruption in judiciary’
The Court said that it will examine whether the public regret expressed by the NCERT is genuine or an attempt to wriggle out of criminal liability.
On February 25, the court had registered the matter as a suo motu case after it was raised before a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi. During the hearing, senior advocate Kapil Sibal urged the bench to take serious note of the issue, stating that “children of Class 8 are taught about corruption in the judiciary,” and termed it a matter of grave concern.
