Panel bats for law of adverse possession

NEW DELHI: Accusing the Modi government of conspiring to turn a “mouse into a monster”, Congress on Friday said the Law Commission’s recommendations on sedition law suggest that the ruling BJP is planning to make the controversial measure more draconian, and its plea in the Supreme Court to “re-examine” it was a subterfuge to preempt its repeal by the apex court.
AICC spokesman Abhishek Singhvi said the commission has recommended that minimum punishment for sedition should be increased from three years to seven years, and the judgment-law of 60 years should be turned into a legislation, while it has not suggested any additional safeguard, caveat or limitation to prevent its misuse.
“It sends a clear signal of colonial mindset of the government. It shows that the government intends to preserve this threat against political opponents and others, while also conveying that it intends to continue to be selective and partisan in misusing the law against political dissent,” Singhvi said.
Expressing outrage, Congress said the commission’s recommendations have been made as if there is no context to the issue of re-examination of the sedition law, though the fact is that the Modi government promised a relook when the SC was threatening to repeal sedition and actually stayed its operation for one year. “Alice in Wonderland said my words mean what I want them to mean. The government’s promise of re-examination meant wanting to make it more stringent and draconian,” Singhvi mocked.
He said the SC intervention came after a 28% rise in sedition cases between 2014-2020 over the period 2010-2014, with the total number standing at 559 cases. He said these cases have been filed against people for complaining of lack of oxygen supply and ventilators during the pandemic, and against journalists for reporting on farm laws, pandemic, Hathras gangrape, CAA and NRC protests. He said there has been brazen targeting of people under sedition, like three cases filed in BJP-ruled states in January 2021 against Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, and senior journalists Mrinal Pande, Rajdeep Sardesai, Zafar Agha and Paresh Nath among others. “We want the BJP government to reply why has it not found courage to repeal the law despite the SC rendering it inoperative and making strong observations against its operation? Why have the sedition cases increased during the BJP regime? Is this an initial step towards a more stringent curbing of dissent ahead of the elections?” Singhvi asked.
The Congress leader asked the BJP how many party leaders and sympathisers have been booked under sedition.