Between Blasphemy and Contempt: NCERT, Judicial Accountability and Educational Freedom
M. J. Vijayan | 08 April 2026 | The Wire
The recent intervention by the Supreme Court of India into a Class 8 social science textbook produced by National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) marks a significant departure from established constitutional practice. Acting on its own motion, the Court has not merely expressed concern or sought clarification. It has imposed a blanket prohibition on the textbook, initiated coercive proceedings, and issued punitive directions against individuals associated with its preparation. The scale and immediacy of these actions require careful legal and institutional scrutiny.
What is at stake in the present controversy is not a textbook, nor a single chapter, nor even the reputation of the higher judiciary. It is something structurally deeper: whether democratic institutions in India can be studied, critiqued, and taught as living, evolving entities – or whether they must be insulated from scrutiny in the name of preserving authority….