Sedition Law

The Delhi High Court Monday said it will hear on May 4 a plea by JNU student Sharjeel Imam seeking bail in connection with a 2020 communal riots case involving allegations of sedition. The petition, which assails a January 24, 2022 order by the trial court dismissing his bail application, was listed for hearing before a bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Vikas Mahajan. The bench fixed the matter for hearing in May as the counsel for one of the parties was not available on Monday. On January 30, the court had sought to know the stand of the city police as to whether Imam's plea for bail could be remanded back to the trial court for adjudication as there was no ground mentioned in the lower court's order for rejecting the relief. The bench had said since section 124A (sedition) of the IPC has been kept in abeyance on the directions of the Supreme Court, it will have to examine the trial court's bail rejection order while keeping in mind the other penal sections applied against ..

Sedition, bail law, and criminal law reforms--we look at some of the major announcements for criminal justice in India

Rejecting JNU student Sharjeel Imam's plea, the high court here on Monday said that the trial court order refusing to stay its proceedings in a 2020 Northeast Delhi riots case against him involving allegations of sedition was fair. Imam had sought his release for the time being on account of the Supreme Court keeping in abeyance Section 124A (Sedition) of IPC until the issue of its constitutionality is examined. He had also challenged the trial court order refusing to stay the ongoing proceedings in the case. A Delhi High Court bench headed by Justice Mukta Gupta disposed of Imam's appeal for stay and requested the lower court to conclude on a short date the examination of the witnesses on which there is no dispute between the parties. The court deferred till January Imam's plea seeking interim bail. He was arrested in January 2020 for allegedly making an inflammatory speech and then arrested in the riots case in August that year. The court clarified that Imam, who is facing ...

An interim order putting on hold the contentious sedition law and the consequential registration of FIRs will continue as the Supreme Court granted additional time to the Centre on Monday to take "appropriate steps" with regard to the reviewing of the colonial-era provision. A bench of Chief Justice Uday Umesh Lalit and justices S Ravindra Bhat and Bela M Trivedi was told by Attorney General R Venkataramani that some more time be granted to the Centre as "something may happen in the winter session of Parliament". The topmost law officer said the issue has been under consideration of the authorities concerned and moreover, there was "no reason to worry" in view of the May 11 interim order, which had put the use of the provision on hold. "Mr R Venkataramani, the attorney general, submits that in terms of the directions issued by this court in order dated May 11, 2022, the matter is still engaging the attention of the relevant authorities. He submits that some additional time be grante

A Delhi court on Friday granted bail to former JNU student Sharjeel Imam in a sedition case in which he was accused of instigating the Jamia riots here in 2019. Additional Sessions Judge Anuj Agrawal granted him relief in the matter. A detailed order from the court is awaited. In the New Friends Colony case, Imam was arrested for instigating and abetting the Jamia riots, due to his seditious speech delivered on December 13, 2019. During the investigation, police invoked sections 124 A (sedition) and 153 A IPC (promoting enmity between classes) against him. However, Imam, who is in judicial custody since January 2020, will continue to remain in jail as he is yet to secure bail in the Delhi riots conspiracy case.

Assam was followed by Haryana with 42 cases reported in the last eight years. Jharkhand and Karnataka followed Haryana with 40 and 38 cases respectively

'Efforts to curtail misuse (of sedition law) have largely failed in the face of administrative bull-headedness'

What is sedition law?

A debate to scrap the British-era sedition law is raging in the corridors of the Supreme Court of India. But what is the sedition law? Why do experts believe that it has been misused since inception?

Rijiju had said he feels that it is a "bold" step taken by the government and that making laws is the government's responsibility.

SC to hear pleas challenging validity of the sedition provisions in July

Conviction rate almost unchanged; charge sheet filed in less than 50% cases in most years

The IPC alone offers a bouquet of choices to suppress freedom of expression

Legal experts Wednesday termed "historic" the Supreme Court order to put on hold the "archaic" colonial-era penal law on sedition till it is reexamined by an appropriate government forum.

All draconian laws must be reviewed

SC seeks Centre's response on protection of interest of citizens till penal law on sedition is reconsidered

Former Union Law Minister Ashwani Kumar has said that sedition law in a free country seems "absolutely unnecessary" and supported its repeal or comprehensive revision by the central government."Today the extent of abuse of the #Sedition law has come to a point where in the national consciousness continuing with colonial #law in a free country seems to be absolutely unnecessary. We should support the repeal of this law or its comprehensive revising," Kumar said in a tweet.He also said the Supreme Court is not obligated to stay the process of hearing the petitions concerning the sedition law on the Centre's plea."Decision to review the sedition law will be leading to a repeal of this law. And in the process, the SC is not divested of the opportunity to determine the constitutional validity of this archaic & colonial law. This law has no place in free India," he said."The way sedition law has been abused over the years, particularly in last months and recent years is compelling ..

Law Minister Rijiju said it were on the directions of PM Modi to re-examine and reconsider the provision of the sedition law and the government will "suitably" take into account views of stakeholders

The Centre on Monday urged the Supreme Court not to invest time in examining the constitutional validity of the penal law on sedition saying it has decided to re-examine and re-consider the provision

Senior advocate Sidharth Luthra said the legislature should have re-examined the relevance of sedition a long time ago