Opposition questions RSS links in NCERT textbook committee

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has reconstituted its 16-member textbook development team for political science for Classes 11 and 12, a move that has drawn sharp criticism from opposition parties and student organisations. They allege that individuals with links to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and its affiliates have been included in the team, raising concerns about the ideological direction of school education.

The NCERT has said the team's mandate includes integrating 'cultural rootedness', 'Indian knowledge systems' and inclusion into the curriculum. Opposition leaders, however, see this as an attempt to push a particular ideological agenda through textbooks.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh accused the NCERT of carrying out the 'sanghikaran' (RSS imprint) of textbooks. "On one hand, they are doing 'shuddhikaran' (purification), which is a sin, and on the other hand they are doing 'sanghikaran' of textbooks, which is a curse," Mr. Ramesh said. He also described the NCERT as the 'Nagpur Coterie for Educational Re-writing and Troublemaking', asserting that the exercise had been under way for the past 12 years under successive Education Ministers of the Narendra Modi-led government.

Congress Rajya Sabha member Syed Naseer Hussain said the composition of the panel raised concerns about the political independence of the textbook development process. He alleged that the BJP-led government had repeatedly used textbooks and curricula to advance its ideological agenda, from altering historical narratives and removing chapters to reshaping school education through schemes such as PM SHRI. Mr. Hussain urged the NCERT and the Education Ministry to ensure that textbook development remained "academically rigorous, politically independent and rooted in India's constitutional ethos".

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) Rajya Sabha member Manoj Jha also questioned the composition of the team, saying questions were bound to arise when people associated with organisations that had "destroyed the education ecosystem" were brought into the process.

The Congress' student wing, the National Students' Union of India (NSUI), and the Left-affiliated All India Students' Association (AISA) also criticised the panel. AISA described it as a "backdoor entry for BJP-RSS propaganda" and demanded its immediate dissolution.

According to the original report, at least four members of the team have documented links, directly or indirectly, with the RSS, the BJP or Sangh-affiliated institutions. These include Yadunath Deshpande, a senior consultant with the Ministry of Education and former ABVP functionary; JNU professor Vandana Mishra, former national secretary of the ABVP; and Prashant Divekar, associated with Pune-based Jnana Prabodhini, an RSS-affiliated institution. JNU associate professor Ravi Rameshchandra Shukla has also served on the editorial board of a journal published by the Indian Institute of Democratic Leadership-Rambhau Mhalgi Prabodhini, an RSS affiliate.

Mr. Deshpande's LinkedIn account, which had described him as a political consultant for the BJP and highlighted his ABVP links, was no longer accessible on Thursday (August 20, 2026).

Trinamool Congress MP Kirti Azad, referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent remarks about 'dimaagi Naxals', alleged that the BJP wanted people to remain "half literates", arguing that those who read and write begin questioning issues that matter.

At the time of reporting, the Ministry of Education and the NCERT had not issued a response to the allegations. The controversy comes amid an ongoing debate over the content of school textbooks and the extent to which ideological considerations should shape educational material.