https://thewire.in/law/sedition-free-speech-law-commission-supreme-court
The 22nd Law Commission of India recently submitted its final report (“Usage of the Law of Sedition”) on the constitutionality of section 124A of the Indian Penal Code. Law Commission reports exert considerable influence on both the government and the Supreme Court and, given that the provision’s constitutionality is pending, it is important to closely read a document that will likely form an important part of any future judgement on the matter.
The report walks the reader through sedition law’s history in India, the Law Commission’s previous reports that discussed the law, Constituent Assembly debates, and the courts’ public-order jurisprudence. After discussing the threats to India’s security and the law’s “alleged” misuse (the Commission passes the buck onto the police instead of the “political class,” as if the police are an autonomous body) and undertaking a wide-ranging comparative survey of sedition law in diverse jurisdictions (the UK, US, Australia, and Canada!), the report concludes with why the law should be retained on the books.
It adds a series of recommendations that ignore the Supreme Court’s post-Kedar Nath jurisprudence, set out vague procedural guidelines, and increase the punishment for the offence.
05/06/2023