Sedition law needs re-examination: Ex-SC judge

Centre can define parameters under which law can apply, so people know their limits, says Justice Ajay Rastogi (Retd)

- SHRUTI KAKKAR

AMID a debate over the sedition law in the country, former Supreme Court Justice Ajay Rastogi says the law needs to be re-examined.

In an interview with this newspaper, Rastogi, who retired as the Supreme Court’s fourth seniormost judge last month, said the government can make the provision elaborate and clarify the parameters within which the sedition law can be invoked.

emphasizing the fact that people under the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression can criticise the government, he said every criticism is not sedition. “Section 124A (sedition) was introduced in the statute during the colonial time. After 20 years of the amendment, in 1891, the matter came up and no case was ever instituted. Were the people not aware at that time?” asked Justice Rastogi.

After 1891, there was an SC judgment in 1962, the Kedar Nath ruling. “Proceeding from 1962 to 2023, amendments have been made and the thought process has changed. Our fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression has now got its own foundation, which did not exist earlier,” he said.