Sedition Laws in India

Sedition

• Sedition is defined as the use of words or actions that are intended to

encourage people to oppose a government.
• Sedition is any act or speech which incites anybody to form anti-
national views against a Government or is probable to disrupt the
public peace or harmony of the state.
• Sedition is covered under section 124-A of the IPC. However, the
section only gives a marginal note on the law of sedition. While, it
covers the crimes that come under the law it does not give a
precise definition of the term “sedition” itself.
• In addition to the above provisions of the IPC, the Parliament of India by the
Constitution (40th Amendment) Act incorporated the Prevention of
Publication of Objectionable Matter Act, 1976 in the Ninth Schedule of the
constitution of India.
• Objectionable matter has been defined as that which incites disaffection
towards the government or to commit any offence or to interfere with the
production and distribution of essential commodities or seduction of any
member of Armed Forces, defamation of the President, Vice-President,
Prime Minister, Speaker, or Governor of a State.
 Brief History of Sedition Laws in India

• The law of sedition was introduced under Sec. 124A of the IPC in 1870 as a
draconian measure to counter anti-colonial sentiments, and most major
leaders of the independence movement - – including Gandhi and Tilak – were
tried under this provision.
• The draft Constitution included the ‘sedition’ and the term ‘public order’ as
grounds on which laws limiting the fundamental right to speech could be
framed.
• After Independence, when the constituent assembly deliberated on the scope
and extent of restrictions that could be placed on free speech, the prominent
exclusion from what eventually became Article 19(2) was the word sedition.
 What activities are considered
seditious?

• A speech made by a person that clearly incites violence or

public disorder
• Written work, any visual or audio which incites violence or
public disorder.
 Punishment
• A person convicted with sedition is punishable with either
imprisonment ranging from 3 years to a lifetime, a fine, or
both
• Sedition is a cognisable offense i.e. the police can arrest a
person accused of sedition without needing a warrant for the
same.
• It is non-bailable i.e. a person arrested for sedition cannot be
released on bail by the police as a matter of his right. He has
to apply for bail before a court or a magistrate.
Provision related to sedition are found in the following laws in India:
• The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Section 124 (A)
• The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Section 95)
• The Seditious Meetings Act, 1911;
• The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (Section 2)

Common to these laws is the idea of “disaffection” that we have inherited

from the British.
 The idea of Disaffection and Sedition

• Disaffection as word has Monarchical connotations

• “Disaffection” has been defined as a feeling that can exist only
between the Ruler and the Ruled.
• The ruler must be accepted as a ruler.
• Disaffection is the opposite of that feeling, and manifests a lack of,
or repudiation of acceptance of a particular government as ruler,
hence acts or deeds carried out as a way of venting out that
disaffection may be termed as seditious acts.
• The essence of sedition lies in the intention of the person being accused. Such
a person must have an active intention to create hatred, contempt, or
disaffection towards the government in the minds of people.
• Disaffection has been specifically defined by Explanation 1 under Section
124A, as all feelings of disloyalty and enmity towards the state. The intention
of a person to spread hatred or disaffection can be inferred from the act or
speech itself.
• Under the Section, the mere attempt to excite hatred is also punishable and
so it is not necessary to check whether the person achieved this purpose or
not.
 Rationale behind the Law

• The main principle behind sedition is that the Government

established by law in a state should remain stable and there should
be no such contempt towards it which could threaten the integrity
of the state through a rebellion.
• Therefore, an essential element of the crime of sedition as
per Section 124A is that the actions or words of the person should
have expressed hatred towards the Government and it should incite
disaffection and violence against the Government established by
law in India.
Sedition laws and Freedom of Speech

• The Supreme Court in Kedar Nath Singh v. State of Bihar

(1962) case gave its judgment based on the conclusion that
some sort of restriction on the ‘Freedom of Speech and
Expression’ is necessary to maintain public order and is
essential to prevent any threat to the integrity and stability of
the nation.
• This is true- our Fundamental Rights cannot be absolute; they need to
be confined in reasonable boundaries to ensure that they don’t bring
harm to others around us
• However, criticism of the state is a part of the very essence of
democracy, which has been emphasized by the courts too.
• The problem arises when the Anti-sedition law is misused
against the citizens and used as a tool to suppress free speech
in order to make the public quietly abide by whatever the
Government says.
 Some landmark cases

• Reg v. Alexander Martin Sullivan (1868)

• Queen-Empress v. Jogendra Chunder Bose and Ors. (1891)
• Queen-Empress v. Bal Gangadhar Tilak (1897)
• Niharendu Dutt Majumdar v. King-Emperor (1942)
• Tara Singh Gopi Chand v. the State (1951)
• Kedar Nath Singh v. State of Bihar (1962)
• Shreya Singhal v. Union of India (2015)
 Suggested Reading

• Consultation paper on Sedition by Law Commission of India,

Government of India, released on August 30, 2018.