SC to delete "harsh" remarks against academicians over controversial NCERT sub-chapter on judiciary

A bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi clarified that the Court's observations in the suo moto case initiated by the Court subsequent to the inclusion of the controversial chapter in the textbook were against the controversial "content" and not against any "individual".

The Supreme Court has assured the three academicians who were behind the controversial, now removed sub-chapter in the Class Eight NCERT textbook "Corruption in Indian Judiciary", that it will delete certain observations against the academicians which attributed malicious intent onto them for preparing the said content along with those which said that no academic institution would engage them for their services. A bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi clarified that the Court's observations in the suo moto case initiated by the Court subsequent to the inclusion of the controversial chapter in the textbook were against the controversial "content" and not against any "individual".

"We knew that the observations were harsh. We knew it affected them. In response to that, we are deleting those portions", Justice Bagchi said. To counsels, Senior advocates Shyam Divan, Gopal Sankarnarayanan and J Sai Deepak representing the academicians, requesting the Court to delete its observations that were against the academic integrity and credibility of their clients by stating that they had "zero intent" to malign the judiciary, the Court said it was never concerned about the inclusion of academic content on the Indian judiciary. The Court clarified that what was concerning was that "corruption" in the said textbook "was highlighted as a unique feature of judiciary".

The Court also asked the academicians to apply sobriety when curating academic literature on the judiciary with a sense of respect for the justice delivery system and the constitutional scheme. The Court said that there should be a balanced approach in pedagogical content on such subjects, which was completely missing.

"Access to justice through legal aid, the role of judges in legal services and legal aid was completely ignored", Justice Bagchi said. After a brief hearing, the Court assured the academicians that it would delete the observations, which it acknowledged were a bit harsh.

The NCERT had withdrawn the Class 8 Social Science textbook, Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Part II), in March following directions from the Supreme Court, which imposed a blanket ban on its publication, reprinting, and digital circulation. The court had termed portions of the chapter on the judiciary as "offending" and made strong observations, stating that the content had caused damage to the institution.

Subsequently, NCERT issued an unconditional apology, stating that the chapter titled "The Role of Judiciary in Our Society" contained inappropriate content. "The Director and Members of NCERT hereby tender an unconditional and unqualified apology... The entire book has been withdrawn and is not available," the statement read. (ANI)