Overview

• Part 1 of the integrated Class 8 Social Science textbook is now in use for the 2025-26 academic year and shifts coverage of the Delhi Sultanate, Mughals and Marathas from Class 7 into a single chapter
• Babur is depicted as a “brutal and ruthless conqueror” who erected “towers of skulls,” Akbar’s reign is labeled a mix of massacres and tolerance, and Aurangzeb is shown ordering the demolition of temples and gurdwaras
• The book portrays the jiziya tax as a tool of public humiliation and coercive conversion and begins with a “Note on Some Darker Periods in History” urging dispassionate study without attributing blame to modern individuals
• NCERT defends the revisions as balanced, evidence-based and aligned with NEP 2020 and the NCF-SE 2023, and BJP leaders praise the clearer account of medieval rule
• Opponents including Congress figures and regional leader Vaiko warn of ideological bias and potential threats to religious harmony and are calling for a review of the new content