Section 124A of Indian Penal Code, 1860 describes the offence of sedition. As per the prescribed section, a Sedition is an act of exciting or attempting to excite the dissatisfaction towards the Government established by law. The offence is punishable with imprisonment for life, to which fine may be added, or with imprisonment which may extend to three years, to which fine may be added, or with fine.
In the section the expression “disaffection” includes disloyalty and all feelings of enmity. Mere expression of the disapproval of the administrative or other action of the Government to excite hatred or contempt does not constitute an offence under this Section. The seditious speech was defined as any false, malicious or scandalous statements directed at the government or at government officials.
Sedition laws in India
The Sedition laws are codified in India in the following Acts:
- Indian Penal Code, 1860 [Section 124(A)]
- Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 [Section 95]
- The Seditious Meetings Act, 1911
- Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act [Section 2(o)(iii)]
Freedom of Speech and Expression
Article 19(1) (a) of the Indian Constitution grants the freedom of free speech and expression. Now here comes the contradiction of law as to have the fundamental right of freely expressing your views on any situation (provided the fundamental right of some other human is not infringed) with the contradiction as to question the views people have for the country. The other law which also has this dilemma is the law of defamation, the law of obscenity, etc.
Everyone in this country has the liberty to express their views and any act done without the incitement to violence is not an act of sedition.
The law of Sedition needs to be constantly looked upon keeping in mind the current global context. While considering the fact that India is full of diverse sentiments but on the other hand arguing against the law of sedition does not directly mean complete and utter freedom of speech. The words that do provoke violence and actions that threaten public order needs to be prosecuted. However, abuse of this particular law has become a weapon in the hands of the government to subdue oppositional voices.
Case Law
Mahatma Gandhi was being prosecuted upon with the charges of Sedition in 1922. And in response to the charges invoked against him, he said that “Section 124-A under, which I am happily charged, is perhaps the prince among the political sections of the IPC designed to suppress the liberty of the citizen.”
The latest case related to the law of sedition is that of Shreya Singhal vs. Union of India. In this case Section 66A was struck down as it violated Article 19(1) of the Constitution of India. It deals with punishment for sending offensive messages through communication service, etc of the Information Technology Act, 2000.
A student of law, Shreya Singhal filed a petition in 2012 seeking an amendment in the section 66A. She was triggered by the arrest of two young girls in Mumbai, for a post on Facebook that was critical of the shutdown of the city after the death of Shiv Sena leader, Bal Thackeray. one of them posted the comment, the other merely ‘liked’ it.
In this judgment, the Apex Court stated that a person could not be tried for sedition unless their speech; however “unpopular,” offensive or inappropriate, had an established connection with any provocation to violence or disruption in public order. The Supreme Court distinguished between “advocacy” and “incitement”, stating that only the latter is punishable by law.