Free speech is about putting forth view without prosecution fear: SC

Free speech is all about taking a viewpoint without the fear of prosecution, the Supreme Court observed on Friday, adding that journalists cannot be prosecuted for promoting enmity between different communities or groups over articles they write.

- Utkarsh Anand

As it set about to examine why a first information report (FIR) against the president and fact-finding team members of Editors Guild of India (EGI) for publishing an allegedly inflammatory report on ethnic clashes between the Meitei and Kuki communities in Manipur should not be quashed, the top court underscored the importance of free speech and press freedom, saying even a factually incorrect report may not attract a penal offence under Section 153A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Section 153A penalises promoting enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc, and acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony, and is punishable with a jail term up to three years.

"They are entitled to put forth a viewpoint... It is just a report.

How can an offence under Section 153 be made out? They may be right; they may be wrong. But that's what free speech is all about," said a bench, headed by Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud.

The bench, which included justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, added that there are hundreds of articles published on a daily basis that may not be factually correct. "Will you prosecute all journalists under Section 153A? Making a false statement in an article is not an offence under Section 153A," it said.