Textbook row: academics ask President to intervene

Why in news

Fifty-one academicians urged President Droupadi Murmu to request the Union Ministry of Education to appeal a Supreme Court ban on a social science textbook regarding judicial corruption.

Background

Academicians from institutions including IIMs and IITs requested presidential intervention regarding a textbook ban. The ban was imposed by the Supreme Court due to a subsection concerning corruption in the judiciary.

Facts for Prelims

• PostDroupadi Murmu: President of India
• BodyUnion Ministry of Education: Responsible for textbook oversight

For Mains

Q. Discuss the implications of judicial intervention in academic curricula and its impact on the freedom of academic discourse in India.

Dimensions to cover in your answer

• Academic freedom: Potential chilling effect on future educationists and student inquiry
• Judicial overreach: Conflict between judicial oversight and the autonomy of educational content
• Public discourse: Restriction of debate on sensitive institutional issues like judicial corruption

Keywords: Judicial overreach · Academic freedom · Curriculum autonomy · Chilling effect · Educational policy

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