New Delhi: A day after the centre made a U-turn and told the Supreme Court that it is ready to reconsider the validity of Section 124A of IPC which pertains to sedition, the Supreme Court continued hearing the petition challenging the constitutional validity of the colonial-era law on Tuesday.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India NV Ramana, Justice Surya Kant and Justice Hima Kohli asked the Centre to respond by tomorrow (May 11) about protecting the interest of citizens till the law is reconsidered.
On Monday, just 48 hours after defending the law while requesting the top court to dismiss the plea challenging it, the Supreme Court informed the SC through an affidavit that it has chosen to reexamine and reconsider the validity of the IPC section that penalises sedition in India. During Tuesday's hearing, the bench was set to decide whether the petition should be referred to a larger bench.
When the bench asked Tushar Mehta, the Solicitor General of India, how long the reconsideration process will take, he replied, "I am not able to give an accurate reply. The process has started". The bench said that it can accept the request to defer the hearing to await the Centre's decision but expressed concerns about the continuing misuse of the provision, which even the Attorney General shared.
"We are making it very clear. We want instructions. We will give you time till tomorrow. Our specific queries are: one about pending cases and the second, as to how the government will take care of future cases...," said the bench. Additionally, suggesting that the centre complete the task of reconsideration of sedition law in 3-4 months, the top court asked why can't the Centre direct state governments to keep matter under 124A in abeyance till the Centre finishes the process of reconsideration? It asked the Centre to inform about the pending cases under the law and protecting the interest of citizens until the law is reconsidered.
Also read: 'Ready to reconsider': Centre's big climbdown on sedition law
