Supreme Court has defended its dignity vis a vis NCERT. But what about vulnerable communities? |
The Supreme Court’s recent suo motu intervention over an NCERT textbook passage allegedly portraying judicial corruption is a welcome and timely assertion of institutional responsibility. By acting swiftly and decisively, it has reaffirmed a foundational principle: That public institutions, especially those entrusted with constitutional authority, must be protected from casual or deliberate disparagement — more so in educational material that shapes young minds. More importantly, the Court has signalled that reputational harm, when normalised, can erode public trust in ways not easily reversible. The authority of institutions rests not only on legal mandate but on public confidence; once this is systematically weakened, constitutional governance itself begins to fray.
This intervention, however, opens up a larger constitutional question. If the dignity of institutions must be protected against misrepresentation, does the same principle extend, by necessary implication, to the dignity of communities who form the fabric of the republic? The Constitution does not recognise hierarchies of dignity. Its guarantees are structured on the premise that respect for persons, groups, and institutions is mutually reinforcing, not mutually exclusive.
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India’s textbooks have long been instruments of nation-building. They do more than convey information; they shape civic imagination. What is included, what is emphasised, and what is omitted influence how citizens come to understand their society and each other. Recent revisions have, therefore, drawn attention not merely to what is written, but to what is no longer there.
In 2022-23, references to the Gujarat riots were dropped from Class 12 Political Science textbooks. References to the Babri Masjid demolition were first diluted, then removed, while the treatment of the Mughal period was significantly reduced. The treatment of caste struggles........