New Delhi, March 11 -- The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the Centre, states, Union territories, National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) and all universities to exclude professor Michel Danino, educator Suparna Diwakar and legal researcher Alok Prasanna Kumar from any role in preparing any academic curriculum, holding that they should not be associated "in any manner" with textbook preparation following the controversy over a Class 8 chapter on 'corruption in the judiciary' prepared by them. "We have no reason to doubt that Prof Danino and his associates, Suparna Diwakar and Alok Prasanna Kumar, either do not have informed knowledge with respect to the Indian judiciary or they deliberately misrepresented the facts in order to project a negative image of Indian judiciary before the students of 8th class who are of impressionable age. We see no reason why these kinds of persons be associated in any manner for purpose of preparation of curriculum or finalisation of textbook for next generation," stated the court. The bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi, however, added that the three individuals may approach the court if they seek modification of the order and provide an explanation. The court also noted that the controversial chapter on the judiciary that discussed corruption and pendency in judiciary without highlighting several other key aspects, was not placed before the National Syllabus and Teaching-Learning Material Committee (NSTC) - a high-powered committee established by NCERT to develop new school syllabi and textbooks for Classes 3-12 - but was digitally circulated selectively to few members. The bench thus directed the Centre to review the composition of NSTC, specifically with respect to those to whom offending chapter was shown. "Ordinarily, it is advisable if such committee comprises different domain experts. If NCERT wishes to teach next generation about judiciary, we find it strange that not a single eminent jurist has been included in this committee. We however leave it to competent authority to consider this aspect," it added. The court further directed that if the chapter on the judiciary is to be reintroduced in the Class 8 textbook or incorporated in textbooks of other classes, the central government must first constitute a committee of domain experts to finalise the curriculum. The committee, the bench said, may preferably include a former senior judge, an eminent academic, and a renowned practitioner of law. The bench also directed the Union government to identify social media accounts and digital platforms that had "irresponsibly" reacted to the proceedings and allegedly maligned the judiciary over the issue, and furnish details to the court so that action could be taken. During the hearing, the court expressed strong disapproval of the manner in which the controversial chapter had been prepared and circulated. Solicitor general Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Union government and NCERT, informed the court that the NCERT director and the secretary in the department of school education had already tendered unconditional apologies and that the Centre had instructed NCERT to review textbooks of all classes. The SG was assisted by ASG KM Nataraj and advocate Manish Kumar Saran. The bench, however, questioned the absence of institutional checks in the preparation of school curriculum. "We would have appreciated had the Union, instead of leaving it to NCERT, roped in a committee of domain experts," it said. Examining the affidavit filed by NCERT, the court remarked that it was "an eye-opener" on how curricular material was being published without proper approval. "Besides realising what a blunder has been committed by NCERT, this affidavit shows how the curriculum is getting published without approval at any level," the bench observed, adding that the matter should have been examined by an assessment body. The bench noted that the chapter was prepared by a textbook development team chaired by professor Michel Danino, with Suparna Diwakar and Alok Prasanna Kumar as members. "They prepared the chapter and apparently circulated it only among themselves and a few others. That's all that happened," the bench said, expressing concern at the process followed. Mehta conceded before the court that the chapter was circulated only digitally among a few members and that the required approval and assessment mechanisms were lacking. He assured the court that an independent panel of experts would now review textbooks. "If this is the casual way to publish curriculum for students in the country, what do you expect us to say?" the bench remarked. The court also took note of NCERT's statement in its affidavit that the chapter had already been "rewritten" for future academic sessions, while questioning the lack of clarity about the process. "The NCERT director has come up with such a laconic statement that the chapter has been rewritten. Who has rewritten it? How was it rewritten? What does it mean?" it asked. The bench directed that if the chapter has indeed been rewritten, it must not be published unless it is approved by a committee of domain experts to be constituted by the central government within a week. While issuing the directions, the court clarified that its orders were not meant to suppress legitimate criticism of the judiciary. "If the judiciary, like any other institution, is suffering from deficiencies and an expert committee highlights them, it would be a welcome step for future generations," the bench said....