New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India orders the suspension of the controversial sedition law, enabling those in jail to approach courts for bail, and rejecting the Government of India’s argument that such trials should continue in courts as charges like terror could be involved, India’s Law and Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju said that he “respects the court and its independence”, but there is a “Lakshman Rekha” that cannot be crossed.
“We’ve made our positions very clear and also informed the court about the intention of our PM (Prime Minister Narendra Modi). We respect the court and its independence. But there’s a ‘Lakshman Rekha’ that must be respected by all organs of the state in letter and spirit. We have to ensure that we respect the provisions of the Indian Constitution as well as existing laws,” NDTV quoted Kiren Rijiju as saying while addressing the reporters.
“We respect each other, the court should respect government, legislature, so as government should also respect court. We have clear demarcation of boundary and that Lakshman Rekha should not be crossed by anybody,” Rijiju was quoted further saying.
As he made the sharp comment, Rijiju evaded a question on whether he believed the Supreme Court’s decision was wrong.
Earlier, the Supreme Court of India ordered the temporary suspension of the controversial sedition law, putting pressure on the government of India which has been accused of “misusing it to stifle free speech”.
The colonial-era law will be paused until the government completes a review, CNN reported quoting the Indian’s top court’s order. No further cases should be registered under the law until the review is complete, it added, in an apparent rebuke to the government of India.
Those currently arrested under the law can apply for bail if they are in prison solely for sedition, Rashmi Singh, a lawyer representing the petitioners, told CNN.
The government of India, this week, told the Supreme Court that it was willing to re-examine the law after a series of petitions were filed in the Supreme Court, challenging it and accusing the government of misusing it.
Singh said she was “exhilarated and very relieved” by the Supreme Court’s order, the international news organisation report said.
“It is a great thing and we hope that when the reconsideration happens, they say that it is a colonial-era law,” CNN quoted her as saying. “This is definitely a positive move in the direction of the sedition law being struck down.”
The law, which was introduced by the British colonial government in 1860, prohibits “words either spoken or written, or by signs or visible representation” that attempt to cause “hatred or contempt, or excite or attempt to excite disaffection,” toward the government. A person convicted of sedition may be imprisoned for more than three years.
The report quoting experts said that India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) uses the law to silence activists, journalists and other critics. India has seen an uptick in its implementation since Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP swept to power in 2014.
In 2015, 30 people were charged with sedition, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). In 2020, the most recent year for which data is available, that number had increased to 73.
In January, Rohinton Nariman, a former judge of India’s Supreme Court, hit out at how sedition laws are being used.
He said young people, students and stand-up comedians were being booked for criticizing the government, while others were getting away with calling for genocide against Muslims, referring to comments made during a three-day event in the city of Haridwar in December when right-wing Hindus called on their followers to kill Muslims, the report added.
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