Critical Analysis Of Sedition Laws In India: IPC & BNS
- IJLLR Journal
- Mar 23
- 2 min read
Shruti Bose, CHRIST (Deemed to be University), School of Law, Pune, Lavasa Campus
Ms. Priya, CHRIST (Deemed to be University), School of Law, Pune, Lavasa Campus
ABSTRACT
Sedition law in India was first enacted in 1870 to curtail dissent under colonial rule. Since then, it has been in India's Indian Penal Code up to Section 124A. As the Indian state gained independence in 1947, it did not change Section 124A; instead, there has been a continued debate on such a balance between freedom of speech and security of the state. Major Supreme Court cases and amendments are being conditioned against the tensions between the citizens' liberty and national security. The most spectacular of these trials include the one against Lokmanya Tilak and Mahatma Gandhi, among others. These cases represent the historical battle for free speech against a repressive state. Current debates over Section 124A and an alternative formulation in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) underscore how sedition law has been an intensely contested subject in India. The BNS expands offences of sedition to cover a wide area and, in so doing, creates several questions relating to ambiguity in definition and scope in the context of free speech, constitutional authority, and public discourse. A comparative analysis of Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code and Section 152 of the BNS has been made, pointing out and contrasting the use of the word and its interpretations. It further details how the use of sedition laws becomes a tool against dissent- suppressing journalists and activists. The effects of such legislation on media freedom engender far- reaching self-censorship since people lose trust in government institutions. A critical look into how nationalism negates individual liberties and the simultaneous need to subject law to reform are considered necessities.
