Post Date: Post Date – 12:35 AM, Thursday – November 3rd
The NDA government’s approach to sedition laws has been tentative and ambiguous, failing to inspire any confidence. Its recent submission to the Supreme Court that colonial-era laws were considering “some changes” did not meet public expectations. There is no other way but to repeal harsh laws. Apart from some vague statements about the proposed changes to the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and Indian Penal Code (IPC), the centre has not put any details in the public domain for debate. Justice Minister R Venkatramani told Supreme Court justices led by Chief Justice UU Lalit that the government is considering the issue and that some changes are expected before the next parliamentary session. In May, the Supreme Court suspended all sedition cases in courts across the country until the government completes its pledge to re-examine and reconsider the IPC’s Section 124A deal with sedition. incite. It also instructed all those in jail for sedition to apply to the court for bail. Recently, there have been several instances of arbitrary and unreasonable use of harsh regulations on ordinary citizens. Back in 1962, the Supreme Court ruled that sedition could not be charged against citizens who criticized the actions of the government because it complied with freedom of speech and expression.
However, successive governments have conveniently ignored these additional clauses and started using them as a tool to suppress speech. It would be incongruous for a free and liberal democracy to enact a sedition law to fight its own citizens. In fact, criticizing the government is the essence of democracy and should not be viewed as an anti-national activity. Now is the time to build a national consensus in support of repealing sedition laws. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), between 2016 and 2019, sedition prosecutions increased by 160%, the conviction rate was only 3.3%, and of the 93 people charged with the crime, only two People can be convicted. 2019. Indiscriminate use of sedition law, ruining many lives. It was created during British rule to suppress freedom struggles and is now widely abused against dissidents. Ironically, while the UK’s abolition of sedition in 2009 is years out of date, India is still pushing the buck on the issue. There is already a strong legal framework in place to deal with those who seek to incite violence or threaten the integrity of the country. In 2018, the Law Commission also recommended that sedition laws should not be used to curb free speech.
