Submission to Law Commission to Scrap Sedition #RightToMeme

The law commission on August 30, 2018 invited public inputs on the law of sedition posing in its first query as whether this archaic law should be repealed. We agree unequivocally, sedition contained in Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code needs to be struck off the statute books, completely. As we documented in our submission [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WNyOdbP7zErHBeOVcNuC9TtJhVrPoAP8/view?usp=sharing] to them this is a law which is not only abused against social media users, it causes

28 September, 2018
1 min read

The law commission on August 30, 2018 invited public inputs on the law of sedition posing in its first query as whether this archaic law should be repealed. We agree unequivocally, sedition contained in Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code needs to be struck off the statute books, completely. As we documented in our submission to them this is a law which is not only abused against social media users, it causes fear and a tremendous amount of self-censorship.

Such chilling of free speech includes instances in which cartoons, Facebook posts, receiving Whatsapp clips and even posting memes online have resulted in sedition charges. It is not as much that sedition is abused, we submit that its only and principal use, is abuse. This is documented in great detail from the days of our freedom struggle when pamphlets were published to the modern, democratic republic of today in which a growing number of Indians use smartphones.

We call on the law commission to scrap sedition and protect our right to meme. For public engagement and enabling wider participation we have also created a simple three step google doc asking people to write in to them on this important issue of online freedom. Click here to participate.

Documents

  • IFF Submission to the Law Commission on Sedition dated September 28, 2018 (link).
  • Guide to public participation in this consultation (bit.ly/scrapsedition).

Subscribe to our newsletter, and don't miss out on our latest updates.

Similar Posts

1
What we do in the shadows: IFF seeks transparency in how Indian ‘smart governments’ are using AI

Noting a glaring lack of transparency and publicly available information on how union and state governments are deploying AI in the public sector, we write to the National Institute of Smart Government urging proactive disclosures and publication of government-led AI projects.

5 min read

2
Big Relief! Supreme Court Stays Notification Constituting Fact-Check Unit!

In a small win for press freedom, Supreme Court has stayed the notification of Union Government operationalising the Fact-Check Unit under Information Technology Rules, 2021, till the constitutionality of the same is finally decided by Bombay HC.

5 min read

3
A DM from the PM (and the storm it stirred)

Last week, millions of WhatsApp users received a message from the Ministry of Electronics & IT, undersigned by the Prime Minister, asking for feedback on schemes introduced by the incumbent government. We unravel what this means for your privacy and the electoral process.

7 min read

Donate to IFF

Help IFF scale up by making a donation for digital rights. Really, when it comes to free speech online, digital privacy, net neutrality and innovation — we got your back!