Sedition, offences against the state: India
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Sedition and the law (S.124-A IPC)
Criticism of government is not sedition: Bombay HC
The Times of India, Mar 18 2015
Swati Deshpande
`Trivedi toons lacked wit, but not seditious'
A citizen can say or write anything critical about the government, or its measures, as long it does not incite violence or is intended to dis rupt public peace and create disorder, the Bombay HC said while holding that cartoons by Aseem Trivedi in 2011 lacked wit but were not seditious as charged by the police. The HC also directed the police to “scrupulously implement new guidelines issued by the Maharashtra government that place checks on filing frivolous sedition cases.
“Cartoons or caricatures are visual representations, words or signs which are supposed to have an element of wit, humour or sarcasm. Having seen the seven cartoons in question, it is difficult to find wit, humour or sarcasm. The cartoons at a meeting on November 27, 2011, in Mumbai, as part of a movement by Anna Hazare against corruption in India, were full of anger and disgust against corruption in the political system and had no wit, humour or sarcasm, the HC said on Tuesday , holding that the sedition charge was not attracted against Trivedi.
“But for that reason, the freedom of speech and expression available to Trivedi to express indignation against corruption in the political system in strong terms or visual representations could not have been encroached upon when there is no allegation of incitement to violence or tendency or intention to create public disorder, the HC bench of Chief Justice Mohit Shah and Jus tice Nitin Jamdar said.
Trivedi's arrest was for serious criminal life imprisonment attracting charge of sedition, among other offences. But the HC ordered his bail three days after his arrest on September 11 following a plea by a city lawyer, and then state advocategeneral Darius Khambata found the invocation excessive. The Bandra-Kurla Complex then dropped the sedition charge.
Maharasthra circular of 2015
The Times of India, Sep 05 2015
Maharashtra issues fresh norms on sedition, draws oppn's ire
People trying to bring change in government through legal means will not face sedition charge in Maharashtra, but those attempting to bring into “hatred or contempt, dissatisfaction and provoking violence“ against the central or state government will be slapped with sedition charges. These provisions are part of a fresh set of guidelines issued to police by the Maharashtra government with regard to invocation of the IPC Section (124-A) pertaining to sedition.
The circular containing these guidelines says sedition clause can be invoked against “whoever, by words, either spoken or written, or by signs or by visible representation, is critical of politicians, elected representatives belonging to the government“.
They were issued in compliance with an assurance given to the Bombay high court by state government while dropping sedition charge against cartoonist Aseem Trivedi, arrested in 2012 for drawing cartoons that allegedly insulted the national emblem and Parliament. The guidelines were issued on August 27 in accordance with assurance in the HC that the government would come out with a circular indicating limitations and parameters of 124-A of IPC, additional chief secretary (home) K P Bakshi said.
“Powers to invoke different sections of IPC are with the station officer. Government can issue guidelines, hence, we have done so to avoid confusion among different police stations,“ he said on Friday.
The circular drew flak from the opposition parties.Leader of opposition in legislative council Dhananjay Munde of NCP said the move indicated an “Emergency like” situation.
