New Delhi, Feb 26 (NationPress) Senior leader of the Congress party and Rajya Sabha representative, Jairam Ramesh, has sharply criticized the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) for including controversial references to the judiciary in its educational materials.

In response to observations made by the Supreme Court, Ramesh labeled the ongoing decade-long revision of textbooks as "shameful" and "hazardous."

In a message posted on X, the Rajya Sabha member accused the revisions of being an "RSS-driven agenda filled with deceit and malice."

“The Supreme Court is rightly disturbed by the inclusion of critical references to the judiciary in the NCERT textbooks. The manner in which these textbooks have been altered over the last ten years is shameful and also perilous. This has been an RSS-driven initiative laden with deceit and malice. It is this operation that warrants scrutiny,” he expressed in his post on X.

The Supreme Court, on Thursday, strongly criticized the NCERT regarding the mention of "corruption in the judiciary" within a Class 8 Social Science textbook. The court noted that this controversy seemed to stem from a "deliberate strategy" that has left the judiciary "wounded."

A Bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, who was addressing a suo motu case titled "In Re: Social Science Textbook for Grade–8 (Part-2) published by NCERT and related issues," issued a series of comprehensive interim directions. These included an immediate nationwide confiscation of the textbook, removal of digital versions, and a complete prohibition on its publication or distribution.

Expressing its initial view that the publication represented "a calculated attempt to undermine institutional authority and tarnish the dignity of the judiciary," the Bench, which also included Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi, cautioned that permitting such narratives to persist unchecked would weaken public trust.

The apex court remarked that while the chapter aimed to discuss the judiciary's role, it neglected to recognize the institution's significant contributions—such as upholding constitutional values, preserving the basic structure doctrine, and enhancing access to justice through legal aid reforms.

Issuing show-cause notices, the CJI Surya Kant-led Bench instructed the Secretary of the Department of School Education within the Ministry of Education and NCERT Director Dr. Dinesh Prasad Saklani to clarify why actions under the Contempt of Courts Act or other relevant laws should not be taken against them or those responsible for drafting the controversial chapter.

The apex court mandated NCERT, in coordination with Union and State education authorities, to urgently seize and eliminate all physical and digital versions of the book from schools, retail spaces, storage locations, and online platforms.

It placed personal accountability on the NCERT Director and educational authorities to ensure the sealing and withdrawal of all copies, directing Principal Secretaries of Education across states to provide compliance reports within two weeks.