New Delhi: The Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reforms (CJAR) has expressed its concern over the Supreme Court’s recent order in which the top court directed the Union and state governments to disassociate professor Michel Danino, Suparna Diwakar, and Alok Prasanna Kumar from all publicly funded curriculum work.The three had supervised the drafting of Chapter IV of the NCERT Class 8 textbook Exploring Society: India and Beyond, which contained a section on corruption in the judiciary. The bench had banned the book in February in a suo motu case. The March 11 direction was issued without hearing the three experts.“We note with anguish that the Supreme Court’s order banning the Class 8 NCERT textbook and barring its authors was passed without adherence to natural justice. The affected parties, including authors Prof. Michel Danino, Ms Suparna Diwakar, and Mr Alok Prasanna Kumar were neither given notice nor adequate opportunity to present their case. The principle of audi alteram partem was not followed,” said CJAR in a statement on April 4.CJAR said that the court mechanically arrived at a conclusion that the chapter carried, “a discernible agenda to undermine the institutional authority and demean the dignity of the judiciary”, by its very first hearing.“This conclusion is factually incorrect. In fact, the 18-page chapter opens with a quote honouring the judiciary, details its structure, highlights landmark cases protecting fundamental rights, and devotes only four pages to challenges and barely one page to corruption. The latter referencing the Bangalore Principles, the CPGRMS accountability mechanism, and a speech by former CJI Justice B.R. Gavai,” said CJAR in the statement.CJAR noted that the particular section ends by noting, “constant efforts being made at both union and state levels to build faith and increase transparency in the judicial system.” This balanced, constructive approach was wholly overlooked, said the statement.“The Order also constitutes judicial overreach into the executive’s domain. NCERT is an autonomous body and its textbooks were developed under the National Curriculum Framework 2023 through structured expert committees. Without examining or reasoning as to illegality, the Court banned the book and assumed the role of pedagogical expert which is a position it is not equipped to occupy,” said CJAR.“The authors’ right to reputation under Article 21 was summarily dispensed with and academic freedoms and free speech under Article 19(1)(a) were overridden without reference to the Court’s own settled jurisprudence against prior restraint,” it added.The statement added that challenges facing the legislature and executive that include corruption are discussed in Classes 7 and 8 textbooks without controversy.CJAR has urged the Supreme Court to revoke the ban on the textbook and its authors, and to permit healthy public discussion of the judiciary’s accomplishments alongside its challenges rather than consigning them to whispers for fear of contempt.“Hence, the judiciary has not been singled out but has been reasonably criticised as an institution that is not perfect and requires corrective steps as other branches of the state. CJAR urges the Supreme Court to revoke the ban on the textbook and its authors, and to permit healthy public discussion of the judiciary’s accomplishments alongside its challenges rather than consigning them to whispers for fear of contempt,” said CJAR.