The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Friday ordered notice to the Centre and the NCERT on a public interest litigation petition that sought a direction to the authorities to revise the passage appearing in Class IX History textbook titled India and the Contemporary World-I to clearly distinguish between the Nazi-era symbol Hakenkreuz (Hooked Cross) and the Dharmic symbol Swastika.
A Division Bench of Justices N. Sathish Kumar and M. Jothiraman was hearing the petition filed by Mahalingam Balaji of Thanjavur district. The petitioner said the incorrect association of the word Swastika with Hakenkreuz has severe real world impacts on Hindus, Buddhists and Jains.
Globally, this wrong association creates a potentially dangerous environment, giving the false impression that Dharmic religions are tied to Nazi ideology, the petitioner said.
He sought a direction to the authorities to use the term Hakenkreuz as the accurate German designation of the Nazi symbol and issue clarificatory note that the symbol is distinct from Sanskrit Swastika of Dharmic traditions in three months.
He also sought a direction to the authorities to review all the textbooks and educational materials published or prescribed by them for similar conflation of Swastika with Hakenkreuz, and to carry out appropriate corrections during the next annual curriculum review cycle. Issue a corrigendum or advisory in six weeks to all States, Union territories and affiliated schools that have adopted NCERT textbooks clarifying historical and linguistic distinction between Swastika and Hakenkreuz, for the benefit of teachers and students.
He also sought a direction to the authorities to publish this on the official websites and forward through official digital communication channels to all the affiliated schools and State Education Departments. Pending the final disposal of the petition, he sought a direction to the authorities to include in the existing digital and the printed versions of the textbook a disclaimer or footnote clarifying that the symbol described in the passage on Page 57 is the Hakenkreuz which is distinct from the Dharmic Swastika in four weeks for the digital version and six weeks for the print version. The court posted the matter for hearing to July 13.
Published – June 05, 2026 08:47 pm IST
