Vinod Dua sedition FIR quashed; Supreme Court cites 1962 order
The Supreme Court on Thursday quashed the FIR filed against journalist Vinod Dua in connection with a sedition case. The case was filed by a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader in Himachal Pradesh last year over Dua's YouTube show criticizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the central government. The Supreme Court observed that every journalist is entitled to protection under a 1962 judgment.
A bench of Justices UU Lalit and Vineet Saran had heard the case against Dua and had reserved the judgment on October 6, 2020. It observed, "Every journalist is entitled to the protection under the Kedar Nath Singh judgment," LiveLaw reported. The Kedar Nath Singh judgment defined the ambit of offenses under Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code, which pertains to sedition.
In the 1962 order, the SC had read down Section 124A, noting that its application should be limited to "acts involving intention or tendency to create disorder, or disturbance of law and order; or incitement to violence." "...mere strong words used to express disapprobation of the measures of the government with a view to their improvement or alteration by lawful means" is not sedition.
However, the SC rejected another prayer made by Dua, which had sought the constitution of a committee to verify allegations against journalists before an FIR is lodged. Dua had prayed that FIRs should not be registered against journalists with over 10 years of experience unless cleared by the committee. The SC said that this prayer would be an encroachment into the legislative domain.
The case against Dua was registered after a complaint filed by BJP leader Ajay Shyam over the journalist's YouTube show. The FIR was filed at the Kumarsain Police station in Shimla district on May 6, 2020, for sedition, public nuisance, printing defamatory materials, and public mischief. According to the complaint, Dua had accused PM Modi of using "deaths and terror attacks" to get votes.
The YouTube show in question was regarding communal violence in Delhi last February. Shyam had complained that Dua made "bizarre allegations" in the show dated March 30, 2020, and instigated violence against Modi and the government. The violence had erupted during protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Over 50 people were killed, while at least 200 were injured in the clashes.
