India, Feb. 26 -- The Supreme Court on Friday ordered the immediate seizure of physical copies and takedown of digital versions of a controversial Class 8 social science textbook carrying a section on "corruption in the judiciary", and issued show-cause notices to the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) director and the secretary, department of school education, asking why criminal contempt proceedings should not be initiated against them.

The directions came a day after a bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant described the inclusion of a section on "corruption in the judiciary" in the textbook as a "calculated move" and a "deep-rooted conspiracy" to malign the institution.

Despite an apology ten...