Sedition in Today’s India: Validity with Regards to Fundamental Rights

Introduction
A person is entitled to his opinions, such
as feelings of disaffection disloyalty towards
the ruling government. Such opinions become
seditious when he does something in furtherance
of such feelings through words, either spoken or
written, or by visual representations.
Sedition in itself is comprehensive term,
and it embraces all those practices, whether by
word, deed, or writing, which are calculated
to disturb the tranquility of the State, and lead
ignorant persons to endeavor to subvert the
Government and laws of the country. The objects
of sedition generally are to induce discontent
and insurrection, and stir up opposition to the
Government, and bring the administration of
justice into contempt; and the very tendency of
sedition is to incite the people to insurrection and
rebellion.2
The gist of the offence of ‘sedition’
is incitement to violence or the tendency or the
intention to create public disorder by words
spoken or written, which have the te3ndency or
the effect of bringing the Government established
by law into hatred or contempt or c r e a t i n g
disaffection in the sense of disloyalty to the
State.4