Apar GuptaThe colonial era law can be used to restrict fundamental rights by the powerful. A reformed law is the need of the hour.
Archives for the tag Defamation
A law whose time is up
Subramanian Swamy v. Union of India
The Supreme Court of India upheld the constitutionality of criminal defamation under Sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 199(1) to 199(4) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. The Court held that while freedom of speech is a fundamental right, it is subject to reasonable restrictions, including those protecting reputation under Article 21 of the Constitution.
How to challenge book bans and censorships legally
Shortly after completing my masters, I returned to active litigation in India and one of the first cases assigned to me by my employer was a case of book banning. The book, authored by a senior politician, was banned by a notification under Section 95 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Section 95 gives the state government the right to ban books that violate various provisions of the Indian Penal Code.