1. Section 124(A) of IPC criminalizes the ‘disaffection’ towards the government by words, either spoken or written, or by signs or by visible representations
2. This 1860 draconian colonial law was created to stifle dissent during colonial rule.
3. Tilak, Gandhi, Maulana Azad and Annie Besant were convicted under this law
4. Today, the law is used to suppress legitimate criticisms of the government
5. Journalists, Human rights activists, political dissenters, public intellectuals, and even farmers and tribals are targetted by this law
6. The law goes against the inalienable fundamental right to expression enshrined in our Constitution
7. The law goes against the very nature of democratic process which relies on active consent and dissent/opposition
8. The law goes against the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees freedom of speech and expression
9. All major world democracies have either repealed this law or discontinued prosecutions
10. The existence of sedition laws in India’s statute books and the resulting criminalization of ‘disaffection’ towards the state is unacceptable in a democratic society.

To sign the petition, go to RepealSeditionLaw.in

See also:

• Anti-corruption cartoonist Aseem Trivedi arrested on sedition charges
• We Are All Seditious Now – A Kafila Series