NCERT textbook ‘rewrite’ was an ‘RSS-driven exercise’: Congress

The Congress on Thursday (February 26, 2026) claimed the Supreme Court of India is “rightly agitated” over the NCERT textbook for class 8 and accused the Centre of orchestrating an “RSS-driven exercise full of mischief and malice” in the rewriting of school textbooks.

Also read: Supreme Court NCERT hearing highlights

Congress communication chief Jairam Ramesh made these remarks after the Supreme Court of India imposed a ban on a Class 8 NCERT social science textbook that contained references to corruption in the judiciary.

“The Supreme Court is rightly agitated over critical references to the judiciary in NCERT textbooks. Actually, the way NCERT textbooks have been rewritten over the past decade is disgraceful, apart from being dangerous,” Mr. Ramesh said in an X post. 

“It has been an RSS-driven exercise full of mischief and malice. It is this racket that needs to be investigated,”he added.

Seizure of copies

A three-judge Bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi ordered the seizure of all physical and digital copies of the book and issued show-cause notices to the NCERT Director and the Secretary, Department of School Education, asking why contempt proceedings should not be initiated.

The court took suo motu cognisance of the matter after senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Singhvi mentioned it for urgent hearing. Observing that it would not allow “anyone on earth” to tarnish the judiciary’s integrity, the Bench expressed strong disapproval of the contents.

Following the court’s remarks, NCERT withdrew the textbook from its website and apologised for “inappropriate content”, stating that the chapter would be rewritten in consultation with appropriate authorities.