SECTION 124 - INDIAN PENAL CODE: A REMNANT OF THE COLONIAL ERA

Abstract

Section 124-A i.e. Sedition under the Indian Penal Code is an act that is likely to incite public disorder or disaffection or discontent towards the government established by law. 1The section was inserted by the Imperial Legislative Council Act of 1870, which was further amended in 1898 to add the term disaffection. Section 124-A was introduced with an intent to quell the dissent against the colonial rule by giving it an interpretation as wide as possible so as to give the government enormous scope for manipulation. 2 The ambiguous elements of the section and the extent of punishment that it seeks to impose, are used arbitrarily by the government even today to curb free speech and control the ‘nonconformists’ for expressing dissent against the government. The recent cases of sedition against Arundhati Roy, Azeem Trivedi, Dr. Binayak Sen and many others are examples of blatant abuse of the law. Thus, highlighting the inherent lacunae in the undemocratic nature of the law which should devoid it of any legitimacy.3 This paper aims to make a case for Abolition of Section 124-A i.e. Sedition under the Indian Penal Code as it is against Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian constitution. The first chapter elucidates the legal interpretation of the section. The second, deals with how sedition is being used in contemporary India through Dr. Binayak Sen’s case. The third chapter outlines comparative legal developments. And the last chapter concludes the paper.