The Editors Guild of India stated its happiness over the Supreme Court’s interim order on the sedition law (IPC 124A).
It said, “The Guild welcomes this interim order as sedition law has been used far too often by Central and state governments against journalists in an effort to curb independent reporting.”
The Supreme Court of India passed an interim order on the controversial sedition law (IPC 124A) to effectively keep the law in abeyance, until the Union Government reconsiders the provision.
The court in its order said, “we hope and expect that the State and Central Governments will restrain from registering any FIR, continuing any investigation or taking any coercive measures by invoking Section 124A of IPC while the aforesaid provision of law is under consideration.”
“All pending trials, appeals and proceedings with respect to the charge framed under Section 124A of IPC be kept in abeyance,” it added.
The court passed the interim order in response to a clutch of petitions filed by the Editors Guild of India, Major General SG Vombatkere (Retd), former Union Minister Arun Shourie, PUCL and others.
The order was passed after the Union government stated in an affidavit that the law requires “re-consideration and re-examination”.
In the press statement, the Guild also thanked the team of lawyers who worked relentlessly on the petition, led by Senior Advocate Mr. Shyam Diwan, and advocates Mr. Prashant Kumar, Mr. Govind Manoharan, Mr. Amarjit Bedi, Mr. Sudipto Sircar and their team.
