Guwahati, Feb 25: Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Wednesday expressed strong objection to portions in the new NCERT Class 8 social science textbook that cite “corruption in judiciary” and “massive backlogs” as challenges. The CJI said he would not allow anyone to “defame or denigrate” the institution and confirmed that he has already taken suo motu cognizance of the matter.

The issue was mentioned before the bench by Senior Advocates Kapil Sibal and Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who described the content as “scandalous” and deeply disturbing. Sibal said, “We are disturbed as members of this institution to find that children of Class 8 are being taught about corruption in judiciary. We have the copies of the book.”

CJI Surya Kant acknowledged receiving numerous calls and messages from judges and stakeholders who were “perturbed” by the book’s contents. He assured the bar that the matter is being dealt with firmly, stating, “I will not allow anyone on earth to taint the integrity of the institution and defame the institution. At any cost, I will not permit it. Whosoever high it may be, the law will take its course.”

Singhvi added that the selectivity of the content was troubling, as it singled out the judiciary while ignoring corruption in politics, bureaucracy, and other institutions. Justice Bagchi also remarked that “constitutional integrity to the basic structure is missing in the structure of the book.”