NCERT may remove judiciary corruption section from Class 8 book

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) is likely to remove the section on “judiciary corruption” from its Class 8 Social Science textbook, according to sources. The move comes after the issue drew attention at the highest judicial level and sparked debate among legal experts.

Sources said the government is also considering action against officials involved in adding the controversial portion. The development follows strong observations made during proceedings in the Supreme Court of India.

Court raises concern

Senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Manu Singhvi raised the matter before a bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant, along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi. They expressed concern that young students were being taught about alleged corruption within the judiciary.

Responding to the submissions, the Chief Justice said he had taken serious note of the issue and could initiate suo motu proceedings. He stated that the court would not allow any defamation of the institution and assured that the law would take its course.

Justice Bagchi also reportedly observed that parts of the textbook appeared inconsistent with the basic structure of the Constitution.

What the chapter said

The now-controversial chapter discussed challenges faced by the judicial system, including corruption concerns, a heavy backlog of cases and shortage of judges. It also mentioned that judges are bound by a code of conduct governing their behaviour both inside and outside court.

The textbook cited approximate pendency figures of about 81,000 cases in the Supreme Court, 62.40 lakh in high courts and around 4.70 crore in district and subordinate courts.

With the review now underway, NCERT is expected to take a final call soon on whether the section will be formally removed or revised.