Will fix accountability, take action against those involved: Education minister on NCERT row

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday expressed anguish over NCERT coming up with a chapter on judicial corruption in its Class 8 textbook, while promising to fix accountability and take action against those involved in drafting the controversial portion.

He also underlined that the government has full respect for the judiciary and has no intent of disrespecting the institution.

The remarks came on a day the Supreme Court observed that there appeared to be a "well-orchestrated conspiracy" to defame the judiciary and imposed a "complete blanket ban" on the Class 8 NCERT book and ordered that all copies, physical and digital, be seized.

"They have fired the gunshot. The judiciary is bleeding," a bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant said, a day after the National Council of Educational Research and Training apologised for "inappropriate content" in the social science textbook, and said it would be rewritten in consultation with appropriate authorities.

The bench, also comprising Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi, issued show cause notices to the NCERT director and the secretary of the department of school education and asked them to explain why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against those responsible.

Reacting to the development, Pradhan said, "I am very sad at what has happened and express regret... There was no intention to insult the judiciary. An inquiry will be conducted and accountability fixed. Action will be taken against those involved in drafting the chapter. As soon as we got to know (about it), the circulation of the textbooks was put on hold."

"In a democratic country like India, the judiciary is supreme and we have utmost respect for it. We have taken the issue very seriously. The court's directives will be complied with," he told reporters in Jamshedpur.

Pradhan was in Jamshedpur to take part in a ceremony where President Droupadi Murmu laid the foundation stone for a Jagannath spiritual centre.

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) social science textbook for Class 8 in question states that corruption, a massive backlog of cases, and the lack of an adequate number of judges are among the challenges faced by the judicial system.

After stern words by the Supreme Court that it will not allow "anyone on earth" to tarnish the judiciary's integrity, the NCERT pulled the textbook from its website, with sources saying the government was livid with the controversial references in the curriculum.

The NCERT on Wednesday also apologised for "inappropriate content" after facing the Supreme Court's ire over the chapter and said the book will be rewritten in consultation with appropriate authorities.