Section 150 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill, 2023: A Regressive Step by the Union
On August 12, 2023, the Union Minister of India, Mr. Amit Shah introduced a
new bill in Parliament to replace the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Criminal
Procedure Code (CrPC) and the Indian Evidence Act. The IPC, which was framed by
the British in the year 1860, has been the core of the criminal justice system
of the country for more than 160 years.
It is now set to be replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
The CrPC of 1973 will be replaced by the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita,
2023.
The Indian Evidence Act of 1872 will be replaced by the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill,
2023.
The Bill proposes 313 amendments that will bring considerably big changes to the
criminal justice system. One of the major conundrums lies in Section 150 of the
Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill, 2023, which will completely repeal the offence of
Sedition under 124A of the IPC. Section 150 of the bill deals with the offence
of sedition. However, it does not use the word sedition but describes the
offence as "endangering sovereignty, unity and integrity of India."
Sedition Law: Origin
The sedition law was used by the British to suppress dissent and imprison
freedom fighters such as Mahatma Gandhi and Bal Gangadhar Tilak who criticised
the policies of the colonial administration. Following Independence, the
drafters of the constitution spent a lot of time commenting on several facets of
this colonial law. K.M. Munshi was one of the most vocal opponents of the
sedition law, claiming that such a harsh law poses a danger to India's
democracy.
He argued that, "as a matter of fact the essence of democracy is criticism of
Government." It was due to his efforts and the persistence of the Sikh leader
Bhupinder Singh Mann that the word sedition was omitted from the Constitution.
However, this law was reimposed by the very controversial First Amendment
that was passed by the government headed by the first Prime Minister Jawaharlal
Nehru. He not only reimposed the sedition law through the first amendment in
1951 but also strengthened it by adding two expressions- "friendly relations
with foreign state" and "public order" as grounds for imposing "reasonable
restrictions" on free speech.
Issue with the Sedition Law
The 1962 Kedar Nath Judgement stated that the sedition statute should only be
used in exceptional circumstances where the nation's security and sovereignty
are at risk. However, there are growing instances to show that this law has been
weaponised as a handy tool against political rivals, to suppress dissent and
free speech. Between 2016 and 2019, for example, the number of cases filed under
Section 124A rose by 160% even as the rate of conviction dropped to 3%.
In one telling instance, a sedition case was so insubstantial that the Allahabad
high court told the state and the police that, "the unity of India is not made
of bamboo reeds which will bend to the passing winds of empty slogans. The
foundations of our nation are more enduring." In fact, instead of protecting
these foundations 124A arguably weakens them. It discourages dissent, the safety
valve of democracy.
The main issue with the Sedition Law is it's poor definition. The terms "bring
into hatred or contempt" or "attempt to excite disaffection" might be
interpreted in a variety of ways, giving the police and the government the right
to harass those who are innocent. Sedition law has a vague definition that makes
it easy for the police to unjustly accuse people because it doesn't specify
which actions are seditious and only gives a general description of what can be
considered seditious.
Issue with Section 150 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill, 2023
Freedom of speech and expression is the hallmark of a democracy that is being
compromised due to the sedition law. Section 150 by describing the offence as
"endangering sovereignty, unity and integrity of India", not only continues with
the major issue of the law but also, increases the vagueness and broadness in
the definition of what act should specifically be categorized as seditious and
what shouldn't.
Notably, the 22nd Law Commission of India in April 2023 had recommended that
Section 124A should be retained in the statute book with certain changes. In its
report, the Law Commission said that "Section 124A needs to be retained in the
Indian Penal Code, though certain amendments, as suggested, may be introduced in
it by incorporating the ratio decidendi of Kedar Nath Singh v. State of Bihar
so as to bring about greater clarity regarding the usage of the provision."
Section 150 is way wider than what was recommended in the Law Report which was
to strengthen the provision by adding procedural safeguards and enhancing jail
term. The Commission had also recommended adding the words "with a tendency to
incite violence or cause public disorder."
Section 150 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill, 2023 provides with nothing new
but only helps in increasing the vagueness of the Sedition Law and extends the
punishment of the unjust law. Currently, sedition draws a punishment of life
imprisonment or with a jail term which may extend to three years. The new
provision changes the three-year imprisonment to 7 years.
Way Forward & Suggestions
It is imperative for the government to understand the importance and graveness
of Sedition Law. Sedition laws and the increasing abuse of them by governments
are a serious topic of concern. Personal liberty and the right to free speech
are hallmarks of liberal democracy and sedition laws and their gross misuse
attack the very foundation of these liberties enshrined in the Indian
Constitution. The need of the hour requires the government to not to introduce a
new bill to replace the core legal statutes but to specifically define the term
"Sedition" in order to prevent the draconian use of this law by the governments
of all colours.
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