"Men feared witches and so they burnt women."
Gov't proposes......SC disposes!
SC strikes down Section 66A of IT Act
What is Section 66A?
(TOI)
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday struck down Section 66A of the IT Act which allowed arrests for posting offensive content on social media sites. The controversial provision made posting offensive material on social networking sites an offence punishable by up to three years in jail.
Section 66A prescribes the punishment for sending "offensive' messages through computers or any other communication device such as a mobile phone or a tablet, and a conviction can fetch a maximum of three years in jail.
According to the act, any person who sends, by means of a computer resource or a communication device,-
(a) any information that is grossly offensive or has menacing character; or
(b) any information which he knows to be false, but for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience, danger, obstruction, insult, injury, criminal intimidation, enmity, hatred or ill will, persistently by making use of such computer resource or a communication device,
(c) any electronic mail or electronic mail message for the purpose of causing annoyance or inconvenience or to deceive or to mislead the addressee or recipient about the origin of such messages, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and with fine.
(TOI)
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday struck down Section 66A of the IT Act which allowed arrests for posting offensive content on social media sites. The controversial provision made posting offensive material on social networking sites an offence punishable by up to three years in jail.
Section 66A prescribes the punishment for sending "offensive' messages through computers or any other communication device such as a mobile phone or a tablet, and a conviction can fetch a maximum of three years in jail.
According to the act, any person who sends, by means of a computer resource or a communication device,-
(a) any information that is grossly offensive or has menacing character; or
(b) any information which he knows to be false, but for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience, danger, obstruction, insult, injury, criminal intimidation, enmity, hatred or ill will, persistently by making use of such computer resource or a communication device,
(c) any electronic mail or electronic mail message for the purpose of causing annoyance or inconvenience or to deceive or to mislead the addressee or recipient about the origin of such messages, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and with fine.
Some sparkles from the Judgment
"To justify suppression of free speech there must be reasonable ground to fear that serious evil
will result if free speech is practiced. There must be reasonable ground to believe that the danger
apprehended is imminent. There must be reasonable ground to believe that the evil to be
prevented is a serious one. The wide difference between advocacy and incitement, between preparation and attempt, between assembling and conspiracy, must be borne in mind. "
"The enforcement of the said Section would really be an insidious form of censorship which impairs a core value contained in Article 19(1)(a). In addition, the said Section has a chilling effect on the freedom of speech and expression. Also, the right of viewers is infringed as such chilling effect
would not give them the benefit of many shades of grey in terms of various points of view that could be viewed over the internet."
Freedom of Speech and Expression
Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution of India states as follows:
“Article 19. Protection of certain rights regarding freedom of speech, etc.—(1) All citizens shall have the right—
(a) to freedom of speech and expression;”
7. Article 19(2) states:
“Article 19. Protection of certain rights regarding freedom of speech, etc.—(2) Nothing in sub-clause (a) of clause (1) shall affect the operation of any existing law, or prevent the State from making any law, in so far as such law imposes reasonable restrictions on the exercise of the right conferred by the said sub-clause in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence.”
Defamation
42. Defamation is defined in Section 499 of the Penal Code
as follows:
“499. Defamation.—Whoever, by words either spoken or intended to be read, or by signs or by visible representations, makes or publishes any imputation concerning any person intending to harm, or knowing or having reason to believe that such imputation will harm, the reputation of such person, is said, except in the cases hereinafter excepted, to defame that person.
Explanation 1.—It may amount to defamation to impute anything to a deceased person, if the
imputation would harm the reputation of that person if living, and is intended to be hurtful to the feelings of his family or other near relatives.
For the full text of the Judgment, please click READ SC LATEST JUDGMENT below.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/BankPensioners/
Read SC LATEST JUDGMENT
"To justify suppression of free speech there must be reasonable ground to fear that serious evil
will result if free speech is practiced. There must be reasonable ground to believe that the danger
apprehended is imminent. There must be reasonable ground to believe that the evil to be
prevented is a serious one. The wide difference between advocacy and incitement, between preparation and attempt, between assembling and conspiracy, must be borne in mind. "
"The enforcement of the said Section would really be an insidious form of censorship which impairs a core value contained in Article 19(1)(a). In addition, the said Section has a chilling effect on the freedom of speech and expression. Also, the right of viewers is infringed as such chilling effect
would not give them the benefit of many shades of grey in terms of various points of view that could be viewed over the internet."
Freedom of Speech and Expression
Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution of India states as follows:
“Article 19. Protection of certain rights regarding freedom of speech, etc.—(1) All citizens shall have the right—
(a) to freedom of speech and expression;”
7. Article 19(2) states:
“Article 19. Protection of certain rights regarding freedom of speech, etc.—(2) Nothing in sub-clause (a) of clause (1) shall affect the operation of any existing law, or prevent the State from making any law, in so far as such law imposes reasonable restrictions on the exercise of the right conferred by the said sub-clause in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence.”
Defamation
42. Defamation is defined in Section 499 of the Penal Code
as follows:
“499. Defamation.—Whoever, by words either spoken or intended to be read, or by signs or by visible representations, makes or publishes any imputation concerning any person intending to harm, or knowing or having reason to believe that such imputation will harm, the reputation of such person, is said, except in the cases hereinafter excepted, to defame that person.
Explanation 1.—It may amount to defamation to impute anything to a deceased person, if the
imputation would harm the reputation of that person if living, and is intended to be hurtful to the feelings of his family or other near relatives.
For the full text of the Judgment, please click READ SC LATEST JUDGMENT below.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/BankPensioners/
Read SC LATEST JUDGMENT
(Recd thru Perumal Maruthu)