The sedition law will be paused until the Centre completes its review, the Supreme Court said today in a landmark order that impacts hundreds charged under the colonial-era rule. Those already facing sedition charges can approach courts for bail.
All pending cases will be kept in abeyance while the government reconsidered the sedition law, the Supreme Court said, referring to petitions that challenged the law alleging its misuse in cases like in Maharashtra, where it was invoked over the chanting of the Hanuman Chalisa.
Here are five high-profile cases that will be affected by the SC order:
1) Congress leader Ajay Rai was charged by Varanasi Police on February 5 for allegedly making objectionable comments about Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath at a public meeting.
2) Last October, Agra Police arrested three Kashmiri engineering students, Arsheed Yusuf, Inayat Altaf Sheikh and Showkat Ahmed Ganai, for allegedly celebrating the victory of Pakistan against India in the T20 World Cup, and “anti-India” messages on WhatsApp. The three were beneficiaries of the PM’s Special Scholarship Scheme for J&K students.
3) Fahad Shah, editor-in-chief of The Kashmir Walla online magazine, was arrested on February 4 by Pulwama Police over social posts.
4) Shah received bail on February 26, but was rearrested in another case in Shopian. On March 5, he received bail but was arrested again in a case registered in Srinagar in 2020. The police also booked him under the Public Safety Act , which allows for detention without trial for upto one year.
5) Independent lawmaker-couple Navneet and Ravi Rana were arrested on April 23 after they threatened to recite the Hanuman Chalisa outside the residence of Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray if their demand to remove loudspeakers from mosques was not met.
