Kevin Moses Paul
16 February 2021
Former chief justice of Bombay high court Pradeep Nandrajogsaid the purpose of using Section 124-A (sedition) “contemplates use of force in overthrowing of a government established by law. It requires incitement of violence as held by the Supreme Court in Kedar Nath v State of Bihar case, but what’s important is the scale of such violence”.
“A protest may take a violent shape, but does it imply that every violent form of protest would attract a charge of sedition,” he asked, adding, “There is to my mind no question of invoking section 124-A (in the Disha Ravi case).”
However, demanding Disha’s immediate release, Karnataka exadvocate general Prof Ravivarma Kumar said: “If an Indian girl, who is young and innocent, is arrested on charges of working against India and taken away (by Delhi Police) like this, then we have to question what kind of government have we got. It is nothing but an insult to Indian women.”
Section 124(A) is constituted in Chapter VI of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) which basically deals with "Offences Against the State". In legal language the section states that --- "Whoever, by words, either spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards, the Government established by law in India, shall be punished 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 general, the section explains that whoever, by spoken or written words, signs, etc. excites or attempts to excite hatred or disaffection towards the Government of India is said to have committed the crime of sedition. The Constitution of India, 1950 grants us certain Fundamental Rights, which represent our basic human rights and liberties which all of us are entitled to. One of these rights is the ‘Right to Freedom of Speech and Expression’, granted by Article 19(1)(a). Thus, Sedition refers to overt actions, gestures or speech by a person in oral or written form which expresses his or her discontent against the established Government in the state, with the aim to incite violence or hatred against it. Classified as a crime in India since 1870, it has been defined under Section 124A of Chapter VI of the Indian Penal Code, 1860. This right isn’t absolute though, and certain reasonable restrictions can be put on it in specific situations such as prevention of defamation of another person, maintenance of public order and decency, protection of the integrity of the nation, etc. which are mentioned in Article 19(2). One of the cases where the ‘Right to Freedom of Speech and Expression’ can be restricted is in the case of Sedition. Due to it's contrasting spirit with the Article 19(a), it's often considered to be against the essence of the essence of the Indian. However, the reality is totally distinct.
Hope it clears your doubts regarding the said offence.
Regards
Kevin M. Paul
