In Karnataka, three students of Kashmiri origin have had a case of sedition filed against them by police for allegedly raising pro-Pakistan slogans in a video they had made. The incident once again foregrounds the flippancy with the police in India invoke sedition, a provision of criminal law which was introduced by the colonial government to deal with a nascent freedom movement.
The sedition provision triggered heated debates in the Constituent Assembly and India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru promised that it would be soon struck down. That did not happen, but the Supreme Court in relevant judgements tightened its interpretation to check abuse. Police forces across India have ignored the apex court’s rulings and invoke sedition on everything from people protesting government policy on alcohol to cartoons.
Experience suggests that when draconian and ambiguously worded laws exist on paper, they will be abused regardless of what the Supreme Court orders. The only way to deal with it is to strike down sedition from statute books.
