5 Things India Needs To Change in 2013
Ban on sedition
The incidents and arrests in the country has questioned the validity of the laws that enforce ban on free speech, tagged as sedition. An archaic law, been there since the time of British rule, under Section 124-A in the Indian penal code. There is no reasoning for this law practiced in a democratic country where it is charged in all its forms, as in the case of Section 66A of the IT Act which applies the same.
It was rightly said by Mahatma Gandhi in 1922 when he was charged for sedition, he said, “Section 124-A, under which I am happily charged, is perhaps the prince among the political sections of the Indian Penal Code designed to suppress the liberty of the citizens. Affection cannot be manufactured or regulated by law. If one has an affection for a person or system, one should be free to give the fullest expression to his disaffection, so long as he does not contemplate, promote or incite to violence. But the section under which Mr Banker and I are charged is one under which mere promotion of disaffection is a crime.”
It is hard to believe that in India we still have to think before practicing one of our fundamental rights, but is change around the corner?
It’s about time India reconsiders its steps and works to build a better country, before everything melts down to nothing. The list has only the major things that needs fixing up, however there are many other things that are demanding attention but getting none.
