On Sedition Law, the Centre Makes a Significant Change in Court Following the Prime Minister’s Instructions

Two days after vehemently defending the country’s colonial-era sedition law and petitioning the Supreme Court to reject the challenges to it, the administration said on Monday that it has chosen to reconsider the legislation. According to official sources, the action was ordered by Prime Minister Modi personally.

The Centre stated in a new affidavit filed before the Supreme Court that in the spirit of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav (75 years of Independence) and PM Narendra Modi’s vision, the Government of India has chosen to re-examine and rethink the provisions of Section 124A, Sedition law.

The government urged the Supreme Court to wait for a review by a “competent forum” and to “not put time” on petitions filed by the Editors’ Guild of India, Trinamool MP Mahua Moitra, and others, asserting that PM Modi was aware of various viewpoints on sedition and in favour of defending civil liberties.

It went on to say that PM Modi was intent on getting rid of “colonial baggage,” and that he has repealed over 1,500 old regulations and over 25,000 compliance requirements since taking office.

Concerned with the rampant abuse of the sedition law, the Supreme Court questioned the union government in July last year why it was not deleting the clause used by the British to silence independence leader Mahatma Gandhi.