Pakistan wise to trash sedition law

Both India and Pakistan governments that came to power after Independence have mostly used the law against political dissenters and critics

When there is a general view that there is little for India to learn from Pakistan, the Lahore High Court has set an example by striking down the sedition law as unconstitutional. The court ruled that Section 124A of the Pakistan Penal Code, called the sedition law, is inconsistent with the country’s Constitution, as it is a product of colonialism prone to misuse. Both India and Pakistan have inherited the law from the British. It was introduced by the British in 1870 and was a tool to exercise control over the populace. It was used to punish dissenters who challenged the British government or spoke or acted against injustice. Prominent victims of the law included Gandhi and Tilak. The governments that came to power in the two countries after Independence also have mostly used the law against political dissenters and critics. The demand for scrapping the law has been persistent in both countries all these years.

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The law is identically worded in India and Pakistan. It says that whoever, by words or other means, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the government, will be punished with a prison sentence and/or a fine. India’s Supreme Court upheld the validity of the law in the Kedar Nath case in 1962 but restricted its scope. The court laid down that its use must be limited to acts involving an intention to create disorder or when there was incitement to violence. But rulers have literally interpreted the words of the law and consistently glossed over the difference between government and nation. They have regularly filed sedition cases against people for raising slogans and protesting peacefully, posting critical social media posts, and publishing inconvenient news reports. Such cases have increased in number after the Modi government came to power. Threats and intimidation of citizens are common.

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Last year, the Supreme Court put the sedition law on hold in India. It told the government not to file any fresh FIRs under it and gave it additional time to review the law. But the government does not seem to be ready to undertake any review of the law. The Lahore High Court found that it violated the citizens’ fundamental rights and Constitutional freedoms.
The law is used in practice to curb the rights of citizens in India also. It has no place in a democratic polity. Many democratic countries like Britain and Australia have scrapped the law. The Lahore High Court’s judgement has been widely welcomed in that country. The law needs to be scrapped in India also at the earliest.