The government on Tuesday directed the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) to withdraw a Class VIII social science textbook containing controversial content on “judicial corruption”, which academics blamed on the outsourcing of writing and editing to RSS ideologues and scholars with minimal involvement in the textbook body.
The action came a day before the Supreme Court chastised the government for the remarks in the textbook.
Sources said the Prime Minister’s Office took up the issue with education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, the NCERT chairperson. Pradhan asked NCERT director Dinesh Prasad Saklani to find out how such material was published and directed him to recall the sold books.
The NCERT is trying to identify the buyers who purchased the book from its
counter. Sources said the NCERT was likely to discard thousands of copies of the
recently released textbook and initiate an inquiry into
the lapses.
In a statement, the NCERT said the error of judgement was “purely unintentional”. It said the book’s distribution would be kept on hold in compliance with the government order.
The contentious passage in the book says: “In a recent statement made in July 2025, the Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai said, ‘Sadly there have been instances of corruption and misconduct that have surfaced within the judiciary. Such occurrences have a negative impact on public confidence, potentially eroding faith in the integrity of the system as whole.’”
Several academics attributed the fiasco to the practice of outsourcing the writing and editing of textbooks. “Textbooks should offer all aspects of an issue without being judgmental. The learners should be made confident in making decisions based on their knowledge. However, this content gives a sweeping narrative about corruption in the judiciary,” said an academic who did not wish to be identified.
An NCERT official said all textbooks were being written by a group of outside experts.
“NCERT faculty members do not take any decision on content. The books are published in the NCERT’s name, but the content is decided by RSS ideologues,” the official said.
The social science textbook in question was prepared by a group of 32 experts, which included only six NCERT faculty members. The group is headed by Michel Danino, guest professor at IIT Gandhinagar and known for books such as Kali Yuga or the Age of Confusion and The Lost River: On the Trail of the Sarasvati.
The NCERT textbooks are edited by a team headed by Gajanan Londhe, an RSS ideologue. The team has been provided office space in the NCERT building, where the entry of other faculty members is restricted. The books are scrutinised by Saklani and Prof. Manjul Bhargava, who has collaborated with the NDA government on educational policies.
The NCERT’s in-house editorial team is not allowed to make any changes to the
textbooks cleared by the experts and scrutinised by Londhe’s team.
The Telegraph sent separate emails to Saklani and Danino seeking their comments on the publication of the contentious content and the NCERT’s marginal role in the writing and editing of textbooks. Their responses are awaited.