SPEAKING
FREELY Indian Internet freedoms in a
maelstrom BySunil Kumar
Speaking
Freely is an Asia Times Online feature that allows
guest writers to have their say. Please
click hereif you are interested in
contributing.
"Freedom of
expression is the matrix, the indispensable
condition of nearly every other form of
freedom."-Benjamin Cardozo,
Great Depression-era Supreme Court justice who
helped uphold the federal Social Security
program.
You have just logged into
Facebook, a popular social networking site to
connect with the world. However, if you choose to
"like" a post, do it at your peril when you are in
Mumbai, India.
Shaheen Dhada, a young girl
realized this some time back. She
went through a
nightmarish ordeal in police custody along with
her friend Renu Srinivasan who had "liked" her
post on Facebook. These young girls were arrested
recently for disagreeing with the bandh
(general strike) and a shutdown of Mumbai city
effected because of the demise of Bal Thackeray,
chief of Shiv Sena, a political party.
Bal
Thackeray had remained a controversial political
figure during his lifetime and drew attention for
his political comments and actions. These young
girls disagreed through their post on the ensuing
bandh after Thackeray's death, complaining over
how it had impacted on the normal pace of life in
the city, which was brought to a virtual
standstill on the day he was cremated with full
state honors.
In a separate event the same
week, Aseem Trivedi, a cartoonist, was hauled in
on charges of sedition, a grave offence against
the state listed under Section 124A of the Indian
Penal Code of 1860 which entails the maximum
punishment of life imprisonment. The cartoonist
had caricatured some prominent Indian symbols of
democracy, like the parliament building and the
national Ashoka emblem of four Asiatic lions
standing back to back.
Through his
cartoons Aseem attempted to draw attention to the
malaise of corruption. Legal experts feel he may
have insulted the national symbols but his actions
in no way seemed to attract the draconian
provision of sedition.
A disturbing
trend Free speech and expression on the
Internet in India is increasingly falling prey to
a narrow understanding of democracy. Strikingly,
the police hastily applied stringent provisions of
law in both the above noted cases. Public outrage
eventually forced the state to withdraw cases
against the accused individuals. These events
raise serious questions not only on the
understanding of law among law enforcement
agencies of the state but also on the existence
and survival of democratic space within the
country.
In several judicial
pronouncements, the Supreme Court of India has
stressed the importance of free speech. Way back
in the year 1950, in the case of Romesh Thapper
versus State of Madras (AIR 1950 SC 124) it was
observed by the court:
"Freedom of speech and of the press
lay at the foundation of all democratic
organizations, for without free political
discussion no public education, so essential for
the proper functioning of the process of the
process of popular government is
possible."
The government of the day
too, is supposedly staffed with well qualified and
competent officers who are expected to act after
applying their mind. However, the police acted
edgy on both these cases in early November.
In the case of Aseem Trivedi, the Advocate
General of Maharashtra, Darius Khambatta admitted
before the High court of Bombay that the leveling
of sedition charges against Aseem was a "bonafide
knee-jerk reaction" by the police. Rajeev Dhawan,
Supreme Court lawyer argued, "If Scooby Doo called
[US President Barack] Obama fat, would it be
sedition?"
It appears that the law
enforcement agencies are failing to identify the
crime correctly and are thereby disturbing the
equilibrium between civil liberties and
maintenance of law and order. The anger of civil
society is at a nadir. Government is not
succeeding in controlling corruption and rate of
inflation. In such a scenario, stifling Internet
freedoms will not only going to accelerate the
process of anarchy but also debilitate the
foundation of democracy in India.
Impending future of Internet
freedom India is in throes of a
technological revolution. According to Gartner, a
leading information technology expert and advisory
company, mobile penetration is expected to reach
72% by the year 2016 in India.Notably, while the
country continues to lag behind on the crucial
social and economic parameters of development, it
is engaging rapidly with advances in the field of
information technology.
The country boasts
a burgeoning population of youngsters who are fast
becoming active participants in political debates
and discussions on the cyberspace. Government
receives bouquets and brickbats for it its
policies and actions continuously on the online
realm. Sting operations and leaks on the Internet
are increasingly determining the course of
political debates.
While it is necessary
to suitably regulate the cyberspace to counter
infiltration of crime and spread of disharmony,
police should not act rashly and violate basic
constitutional protection available to every
person. Freedom of free speech and expression is a
vital freedom in a democracy. Genuine criticism
and dissent also is an essential constituent of
this freedom.
Effort should be to remove
the bad apples and not picking on the still grown
ones. Educating the law enforcement agencies on
internet usage and related laws should be
prioritized. Limiting the democratic space for
young members of society who are venturing to
formulate their political views by expressing
themselves on social networking sites only
projects an "anxious" state out to muzzle dissent.
Speaking Freely is an Asia Times Online
feature that allows guest writers to have their
say.Please
click hereif you are interested in
contributing. Articles submitted for this section
allow our readers to express their opinions and do
not necessarily meet the same editorial standards
of Asia Times Online's regular contributors.
Sunil Kumar is an
Independent Legal Researcher based at Hoshiarpur,
Punjab, India. He has recently completed his LLM
(Masters in Law) from Faculty of Law, University
of Delhi. He can be reached at
skreative@rediffmail.com.
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