PMO Not Happy Over NCERT Book Issue: Sources

New Delhi: The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) is not happy with the National Council of Educational Research & Training (NCERT) in the wake of a barrage of criticism over the Class 8 Social Science Text Book, sources claimed on Thursday.

Government sources told ETV Bharat, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his displeasure during the Cabinet meeting, which was held on Tuesday. The Prime Minister, during the meeting, said what are we teaching to students from class 8 about judicial corruption. The Prime Minister also asked who is overseeing all this, and has someone's accountability been fixed."

The Supreme Court imposed a blanket ban on this textbook, carrying a section on "corruption in the judiciary". The Apex Court has ordered a seizure of all physical copies, along with the takedown of digital forms.

Reacting to the Apex Court's order, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan told reporters, "We respect the judiciary with utmost respect. Whatever the judiciary has said is our utmost respect. We will follow it completely. I am deeply saddened by what happened and express my regret."

"When this incident came to my attention, I immediately instructed NCERT to withdraw all the books and ensure they were not distributed further. There was no intention to insult the judiciary. We take the incident seriously," he said.

The Minister said an inquiry will be conducted and action will be taken if anyone is found to be involved. He reiterated that such an error will not happen again.

Earlier, the NCERT in a communique said, "As per the extant procedure, NCERT brought out the Social Science textbook, Exploring Society: India and Beyond, Vol II, for Class 8 on February 24, 2026. On receiving the textbook, it has been observed that certain inappropriate textual material and errors of judgment have inadvertently crept into Chapter No 4, entitled 'The Role of Judiciary in our Society' (pg 125-142). The Department of School Education & Literacy (Ministry of Education) also made a similar observation and directed that the distribution of this book may be kept on strict hold until further orders. The same has been complied with."

The NCERT said it holds the judiciary in the highest esteem and considers it to be the upholder of the Indian Constitution and protector of Fundamental Rights, adding that the aforesaid error is purely unintentional, and NCERT regrets the inclusion of inappropriate material in the said chapter.

The NCERT reiterated that the objective of the new textbooks is to strengthen constitutional literacy, institutional respect, and informed understanding of democratic participation amongst students.

"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. And hence, the same shall be re-written, with consultation of the appropriate authority, as necessary, and would be made available to students of Class 8 accordingly on the commencement of academic session 2026-27," it said.

It added, "NCERT, once again, regrets this error of judgement and apologizes while reiterating our resolve to continuously work for institutional sanctity and respect."