SC not to consider amending IT law, will judge statute as it stands

SC not to consider amending IT law, will judge statute as it stands

FPJ BureauUpdated: Saturday, June 01, 2019, 04:14 AM IST
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New Delhi : Supreme Court on Tuesday said it would test the constitutional validity of a controversial provision of cyber law giving the police powers to arrest web users for posting objectionable contents, saying it would not consider the government’s stand that it was open to changes.

“We have to judge the statute as it stands today. We are not concerned with your (government’s) stand,” a bench of justices J Chelameswar and Rohinton F Nariman said.

The court’s remarks came when Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the government does not want to save ‘anyhow’, section 66-A of the Information Technology Act and is open to suggestions to ‘amend/change’ the law in question.

“We are not in an adversarial litigation. The court can record my statement that the penal consequences, as provided in section 66-A, will not be made applicable in cases relating to freedom of speech and expression of citizens,” he said, adding that the court may consider making the offence under the provision as ‘non-cognizable’.

This will create a situation where the criminal law will be set in motion after judicial scrutiny and police will not be able to act on its own, he said. “How long will a gentleman remain in jail? He may remain in jail till a judge of the Supreme Court or any other court will apply the judicial mind,” the bench said.

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