The Supreme Court today stayed implementation of the controversial National Curriculum Framework for Secondary Education (NCFSE) termed by many educationists as an attempt to "saffronise" school syllabi.
The interim order was passed by the Court on a PIL filed by Aruna Roy, B G Verghese and Meena Radhakrishna Tyabji alleging that an important decision to change school syllabi was taken without consulting Central Advisory Board on Education (CABE), the apex body on education policy.
While ordering interim stay of NCFSE, a three-judge Bench of Chief Justice S P Bharucha, Justice S V Patil and Justice B P Singh also issued notices to Union Human Resource Development Ministry, Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE), National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) and National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).
Advertisement
The Bench, while giving two weeks time to the respondent to reply to a PIL, said "In the meantime, there shall be a direction to the HRD Ministry, CBSE and NCERT not to further implement the new curriculum without consultation with CABE." When Additional Solicitor General Mukul Rohtagi requested the Court not to pass any interim order and thathe would come back with the response of the Union Government, the Court wanted to know whether he could give an undertaking that till the Centre responded, there would be no implementation of the new curriculum.
A similar request from NCERT counsel M N Krishnamani met with the same poser from the Court. When both were unable to give any undertaking, the Court passed the interim stay order.
Advertisement
Appearing for the petitioners, senior advocate Fali Nariman contended that the NCFSE was being given effect to by the Government, CBSE and NCERT though the same has not been approved by CABE, which comprised of experts as well as the Union Education Minister and all State education ministers.
"The Centre, CBSE and NCERT have not consulted the CABE despite the fact that the National Policy on Education (NPE), 1986 has specifically stated that the CABE ought to be consulted in issues pertaining to education," Nariman said.
The petitioners accused the Centre of "deliberately" not convening the CABE nor a meeting of the Ministers of the various States despite the fact that education was in the Concurrent List and the NPE, 1986 providing for coordination between the Centre and Statepertaining to education.
"The respondents have also deleted portions of existing text books without the permission of the concerned authors wherever the portion was found to be opposed to the so called 'religious sentiments' of some group," they said.
The petitioners accused the Government of revising the syllabi for school education to orient the same "towards promotion of the political and religious ideology in favour with some sections of the government".
Giving instances, they said "deletions are purportedly made under the pretext that many incidents in History offend the religious sentiments of different sections of the people. Therefore, history is being rewritten.
For instance, certain reference in the text books related to beef eating practices, varna system, the Hindu tradition of sacrificing cows have been deleted.
