On sedition, the Supreme Court has aligned itself with the collective conscience of India

News: The Supreme Court’s seminal intervention in a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of section 124A of the Indian Penal Code is a watershed moment in the progressive expansion of human rights jurisprudence.

The SC directed the Union government and the states to refrain from using the law of sedition. In addition, the Supreme Court has also kept all previous cases under Section 124A of the IPC in abeyance till the matter is reconsidered in a comprehensive way. 

Why SC’s intervention in this case is significant?

In what is seen as a first in judicial history, the Supreme Court has virtually rendered redundant the provision of a criminal law without expressly declaring it as unconstitutional.

In an example of judicial statecraft, the court has shielded individuals against a harsh law without violating Parliament’s legislative remit or the executive’s command over policy decisions.

The intervention of the SC leans in the favour of the libertarian bent of the Indian Constitution.

Why the sedition law must go?

Rampant abuse of the archaic colonial law in recent times, compromising the citizens’ right to liberty & legal due process, right to reputation and dignity.

Suppression of dissent: Cartoonists, journalists, activists, intellectuals, students and politicians have suffered prolonged incarceration and oppressive criminal trials for their convictions and beliefs.

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What is the likely impact of the SC’s intervention in this case?

It can nudge the government to enact an anti-lynching humanitarian law and a comprehensive law against custodial torture, considering the proven inadequacy of the guidelines issued by it for its elimination.

What is the situation wrt custodial torture in India?

A report by the National Campaign Against Torture has confirmed that 1,731 persons died in custody in 2019 alone.

The absence of an anti-custodial torture law, a glaring gap in the architecture of the criminal justice system, is inexplicable considering the Article 21, recommendations of the Select Committee of Rajya Sabha (2010), the Law Commission of India (2017) and the Human Rights Commission and the judgments of the Supreme Court (Puttaswamy, 2017; Jeeja Ghosh, 2016; and Shabnam, 2015).

Way forward

It is expected likewise from the court to intervene suitably and read down the UAPA and other criminal laws that have been repeatedly misused to trample upon the civil liberties and rights of the people.

This would enhance India’s soft power in its engagement with the international community. The court-inspired initiatives would also validate the nation’s pre-eminent role in the shaping of a new world order.

Governments for their part must know that they can stand only when founded upon liberty and justice. For the present, the prime minister has done well in deciding to revisit a law that is anathema in a free country.

Source: This post is based on the article “On sedition, the Supreme Court has aligned itself with the collective conscience of India” published in The Indian Express on 18th May 22.