advertisement
"Vagueness of the law allows prosecution agencies to charge people. Even 70 years after Independence, our judges don't seem to realise what is sedition, what is terrorism," said former Supreme Court judge Deepak Gupta, who, along with four other former judges, called out the stringent UAPA and sedition laws at a recent public webinar.
The webinar titled “Democracy, Dissent and Draconian laws – Should the UAPA and sedition have a place in our statute books?" was organised by the Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reforms and the Human Rights Defenders Alert.
The panelists included former SC judges – Justice Aftab Alam, Justice Madan Lokur, Justice Deepak Gupta, Justice Gopala Gowda – and former Patna high court judge and senior advocate Anjana Prakash.
Speaking on the legislative intent of UAPA, sedition and the ground reality of the use of these laws, Justice Deepak Gupta said that the draconian laws have no place in a democracy like India and are used to stifle dissent and quell the voices that are asking questions from the government.
In the discussion, Justice Gupta elaborated on how the law came about in the British era and its intent.
He pertinently added that as far as the law of sedition is concerned, “there is no case for it to be retained in the statute book and should be shown the door as soon as possible”.
Justice Lokur echoed the statements made by Justice Gupta; however, he said that it's likely that these laws are not going anywhere.
He stressed on the need for compensation and accountability for those who are wrongfully treated under the laws, as he listed multiple cases where persons who were jailed for multiple years were not provided with any compensation.
He drew attention to the need for compensation of mental and emotional trauma caused by the arrests and detention of people jailed under UAPA and sedition laws.
Tune in to the podcast for more!
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)
Published: 11 Aug 2021,06:41 PM IST