NCERT Class 8 Social Science textbook to be rewritten after SC flags ‘judiciary corruption’ section

The National Council of Educational Research & Training (NCERT) has put the distribution of the NCERT Class 8 Social Science textbook on hold after the Supreme Court flagged the “corruption in the judiciary” section and expressed disapproval of its content. The Class 8 Social Science book will be rewritten after consultation with the appropriate authorities for the academic year 2026-27.

According to the official NCERT press release, NCERT’s Social Science textbook, Exploring Society: India and Beyond, Vol II, for Class 8, had certain “inappropriate textual material” and “error of judge­ment” that inadvertently crept into Chapter 4, entitled “The Role of Judiciary in our Society”.

However, NCERT said that the error was “purely unintentional” and it regrets the inclusion of inappropriate material in the chapter. NCERT reiterated that the objective of the new textbooks is to “strengthen constitutional literacy” and to understand the importance of democratic participation.

“There is no intent to question or diminish the authority of any constitutional body. As part of its continuous review process, NCERT remains open to constructive feedback,” the official NCERT press release reads.

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NCERT Row: SC opposes sections on ‘judicial corruption’

The Supreme Court took suo motu cognizance of the newly released NCERT Class 8 Social Science textbook section that refers to “corruption in the judiciary”, and expressed disapproval.

Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant asserted that the court cannot allow anyone to defame the institution, saying all high court judges are “perturbed” by the inclusion. Furthermore, CJI Joymalya Bagchi and Kant termed the book as an “attack” on the basic structure of the Constitution.

The chapter listed corruption at various levels of the judiciary and a massive backlog of cases due to multiple reasons, including “lack of an adequate number of judges,” “complicated legal procedures,” and “poor infrastructure,” among the challenges faced by the judicial system.

NCERT’s Class 8 Social Science textbook highlighted challenges faced by judicial system, citing 81,000 pending cases in the SC, 62.40 lakh in high courts and 4.70 crore in the district courts.