Supreme Court Modifies Previous Order on NCERT Controversy

Supreme Court Revises March 11 Order

On Friday, the Supreme Court amended its order from March 11, which had instructed the central and state governments, along with others, to distance themselves from three academics. This decision follows a controversy regarding the inclusion of 'objectionable' content related to corruption in the judiciary in a chapter of an NCERT textbook.

The Supreme Court granted autonomy to the central and state governments, union territories, public universities, and institutions receiving financial aid from either government to make independent decisions on this matter, stating that they could do so without being influenced by the comments made in the March 11 order.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice Vipul M. Pancholi also retracted the part of the March 11 order that claimed the three academics—Professor Michel Danino, Suparna Diwakar, and Alok Prasanna Kumar—had intentionally misrepresented facts to portray a negative image of the Indian judiciary to eighth-grade students.

This order was issued while hearing a petition filed by the three academics, who argued that the drafting of the controversial material was a collective process rather than the decision of a single individual. The court clarified that its remarks were made in the context of the content, not the individuals involved.

Previously, on March 11, the Supreme Court had directed the central and state governments to take strict action against the three experts involved in drafting the contentious chapter in the NCERT's eighth-grade social science textbook.

Formation of Expert Committee

The court had also instructed the central government to establish a committee of relevant experts within a week to finalize the NCERT's legal studies curriculum, not only for eighth grade but also for higher classes.