SC Flags NCERT Textbook’s ‘Judicial Corruption’ Chapter

The controversial portions about judicial corruption in NCERT's class 8 textbook could be removed as the government has not taken kindly to the matter, sources said on Wednesday, while the council pulled the book from its website.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Singhvi brought up the issue for immediate consideration, and a three-judge panel consisting of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi, took suo motu cognisance of the "objectionable" statements about the judiciary in NCERT textbooks.

Separately, CJI Kant vehemently opposed a chapter on judicial corruption in the NCERT's Class 8 curriculum, stating that no one on earth would be permitted to tarnish the integrity of the judiciary or defame it.

According to the new social science textbooks for Class 8 published by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), the judicial system faces a variety of difficulties, including corruption, a large backlog of cases, and a shortage of judges.

Meanwhile, the NCERT is said to have called an internal meeting to review the recommendations of the subject experts involved in the chapter and the officials who approved it.

Calls and SMS regarding the matter were not answered by NCERT Chairman Dinesh Prasad Saklani. Another senior council official declined to comment, stating that the issue is still under review.

Although NCERT is an independent organisation, authorities in charge of adding chapters ought to have used their judgment, according to government sources. If the issue of corruption was to be included in the textbook, it should have been related to all three organs -- the executive, judiciary and the legislature, they said.

According to the book, there are roughly 81,000 cases outstanding in the Supreme Court, 62.40 lakh in high courts, and 4.70 crore in district and subordinate courts.

It refers to the established process for receiving complaints through the Centralised Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS) and emphasises the judiciary's internal accountability measures.

The book claims that between 2017 and 2021, this mechanism received over 1,600 complaints.

The textbook also quotes former Chief Justice of India B R Gavai, who in July 2025 said that instances of corruption and misconduct within the judiciary hurt public confidence.

"However, the path to rebuilding this trust lies in the swift, decisive and transparent action taken to address and resolve these issues... Transparency and accountability are democratic virtues," he is quoted as saying in the book.

The government sources said that data on corruption in the judiciary is available in parliamentary records and the national judicial data grid, but the Union Law Ministry was not consulted for cross verification of the fact.

The sources also said former CJI Gavai's quote on corruption in the judiciary was taken out of context, and he is learnt to be unhappy over it.

"If students are to be taught about corruption, the chapter should have ideally encouraged them to file a graft complaint, but not single out one institution. An in-house mechanism already exists in the Supreme Court and the 25 high courts to deal with complaints of corruption against judges. As per the drafters of the constitution, the judiciary is an independent institution which is capable of dealing with such cases," a government functionary said.

Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal had told the Lok Sabha earlier this month that 8,639 complaints have been received against sitting judges between 2016 and 2025. The highest number of complaints (1,170) was received in 2024 by the office of the CJI against sitting judges.