Supreme Court Imposes Life Ban on Three Academics for 'Corruption' Chapter in NCERT Textbook The Supreme Court on Wednesday imposed a life ban on three academics for their role in a controversial class 8 NCERT textbook chapter that referenced "corruption in the judiciary." The court held them responsible for "projecting a negative image of the judiciary" and ordered strict action against social media users who endorsed the content to undermine judicial integrity. The three academics—Prof Michel Danino, Suparna Diwakar, and Alok Prasanna Kumar—were barred from any government or government-aided institution projects, with the court emphasizing their failure to accurately represent the judiciary's role. The court directed the Union government to identify and take action against "social media mischief mongers" who amplified the objectionable content. NCERT director Dinesh Prasad Saklani and school education secretary Sanjay Kumar apologized unconditionally for the "major and unpardonable lapse" and pledged to prevent similar issues in the future. The court criticized NCERT for not involving legal experts in the drafting process, noting that the National Syllabus and Teaching Learning Material Committee lacked representation from legal professionals. The bench clarified that its orders did not aim to suppress legitimate criticism of judicial functioning but opposed the inclusion of unverified claims in educational materials. It mandated that any revised version of the chapter must be approved by a committee comprising a former judge, an eminent academician, and a renowned law practitioner, with the National Judicial Academy in Bhopal involved in the process. The court also emphasized that the revised chapter would not be included in the textbook unless it met these criteria.#supreme_court #ncert #dinesh_prasad_saklani #sanjay_kumar #national_judicial_academy
