Arun Shourie Moves Top Court Against Constitutional Validity Of Sedition Law

Former Union Minister Arun Shourie has knocked on the doors of the Supreme Court challenging the constitutional validity of Section 124-A (Sedition Law) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Mr Shourie, in his petition filed before Supreme Court, sought appropriate direction from the top court declaring Section 124-A of the Indian Penal Code as unconstitutional and said it is violative of Articles 14 and 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution.

Mr Shourie, who filed the petition in the top court through lawyer Prashant Bhushan, also sought direction for strict action "as per law be taken against concerned public servants and complainant/informants in cases, where the accused is discharged in a case of sedition and lay down guidelines for the same."

The petition filed by Mr Shourie, whose copy is accessed by ANI, said, "the citizen has a right to say or write whatever he likes about the government, or its measures, by way of criticism or comment, so long as he does not incite people to violence against the Government established by law or with the intention of creating public disorder."

"The provisions of the Sections of the (Sedition law) read as a whole, along with the explanations, make it reasonably clear that the sections aim at rendering penal only such activities as would be intended, or have a tendency, to create disorder or disturbance of public peace by resort to violence," the petition filed before the Supreme Court said.

The Supreme Court had already fixed other similar petitions pertaining to scrapping of Section 124-A (Sedition law) for hearing on July 27.