Jawaharlal Nehru once said, “as far as I am concerned, Section 124A is highly objectionable and obnoxious and it should have no place…in any body of laws that we might pass. The sooner we get rid of it the better.” How relevant is the above quotation in respect to recent times? Comment.
The_Lannister 7 years
Section 124A or the Sedition Law of the IPC was passed by the British government in 1870s to curb the anti British sentiments and opinion arising in the Indian society through various forms of media. It provided the British a weapon to criminalize dissent. After 1947, most of the IPC was retained, including the Sedition Law.
The sedition law criminalizes expressions or statements that incite hatred or anti national feelings among the people of India. The Supreme court of India also has provided the clear definition to the very meaning of sedition and what can be punished under the law.
In recent times the sedition law has been used by the "nationalists" in an attempt to stifle the voices of dissent on several occasions. But the fact to be noted here are that convictions under this law has been extremely low and this shows that the judicial system has been handling these cases with utmost fairness.
The Sedition law plays a vital role in curbing terrorism where it allows the Government to take action against anti social elements especially in sensitive areas such as Kashmir. In such instances the sedition law was rightfully used to protect the sovereignty and the integrity of the nation.
Thus it is seen that even though during recent times the threat of sedition has been frequently used, only those cases where the sovereignty of the nation was questioned was considered to be sedition. Hence Sedition law should remain, as our judicial system is more than capable in identifying and punishing actual sedition.
Utsav Pandey 7 years
Utsav Pandey 7 years
Section 124A of the IPC which deals with the charges of sedition or more precisely " Whomsoever by words either spoken or written or by sign brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt towards the government is punishable by Law "
The Sedition laws in India are colonial laws which was enforced on the people of India because any demand of the people of responsible and accountable government with its basic pillars of democracy , liberty and equality could not be met by the Colonial powers. There was no way in which the demands of the people and aspirations of the empire could be met under same roof. So the best way forward for Colonial power was to supress any dissenting voice. The very struggle for independence was to guarantee the right to expression and even dissent and oppose.
There has been various cases in the country where protests against the government rules and institutions have been termed as seditious . The most recent was when students protesting were termed seditious. The expression by the people is debatable but SC verdict that " sedition is only involved when there is incitement of violence " must be kept in mind and these laws should not be used precariously .
These laws have more chances to get misused by the state. It is the sign of a mature democracy to withstand criticism and scrutiny of the citizens . On the other hand it is also the responsibility of the people to express in the manner fit for democratic setup
