There is a huge uproar over a chapter on corruption in the judiciary in the NCERT Class 8 Social Science book. The Supreme Court has expressed strong displeasure over this and has banned the book. At the same time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also expressed his unhappiness on this matter and said that responsibility should be fixed. Now the investigation has started from the government side and a letter has also been written to stop the book on digital platforms.
PM Modi expressed his displeasure, said- responsibility should be fixed
According to government sources, PM Modi is very angry with this whole matter. He said, ‘Who is watching all this?’ And emphasis has been laid on fixing responsibility. He gave his opinion on this while returning to India from Israel. The government is now taking this matter seriously and is preparing to take action.
Education Minister apologized and promised action
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has also expressed regret over this. He said that we respect the judiciary the most and the government had no intention of insulting it. The minister said that he is deeply saddened by this incident and the decision of the Supreme Court will be fully followed.
He has promised to fix responsibility and take action against those responsible. Also, the Education Ministry has written a letter to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry and the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) asking them to stop the book on digital platforms.
NCERT started investigation, admitted mistake
NCERT has called this chapter an ‘error of judgement’ and has apologized. He said that the book will be rewritten and advice will be taken from the right authority. Now NCERT is investigating where things went wrong in the process of making textbooks and who are responsible.
Sources say that this investigation will be done strictly so that such mistakes do not happen in future. The book has also been removed from the NCERT website.
Supreme Court itself heard and issued notice
The Supreme Court itself took notice regarding this book on Wednesday and heard it on Thursday. Chief Justice Surya Kant’s bench said that this seems to be a well-planned conspiracy to defame the judiciary. The court has imposed a complete ban on the book in India and abroad, and has also ordered the confiscation of all physical and digital copies. Online sharing has also been banned.
The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Secretary of the Education Ministry and the Director of NCERT under the Contempt of Court Act. He has asked why action should not be taken against them. The bench also questioned Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and said that an in-depth investigation should be conducted and strict action should be taken against those responsible. The Chief Justice even said that ‘heads must role’ i.e. those responsible will not be spared and the case will not be closed.
The court has asked from NCERT for the list of committee members who had approved this chapter. It has also been asked to provide the names and credentials of the textbook development team. Original records of minutes of the meetings will also have to be presented in the next hearing.
The court says that corruption has been talked about in the book, but there is not much focus on the good things of the judiciary like constitutional morality, basic structure doctrine, legal aid and access to justice.
