FREEDOM OF SPEECH IN INDIA-AN ANALYSIS

This essay explores a somewhat neglected facet of Indian free speech jurisprudence: the connection between the freedom of speech and the background economic structure and distribution of resources. Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution guarantees to all citizens the freedom of speech and expression. Article 19(2) permits the government to impose, by law, reasonable restrictions upon the exercise of this freedom, in the interests of public order, decency or morality, defamation, and so on. Over the years, the Supreme Court has adjudicated a number of cases dealing with the scope of Article 19(2). In all these cases, what is undisputed is the existence of a law that restricts the freedom of speech. The disputed question has been whether that law is saved by any one of Article 19(2)’s terms. Such cases, therefore, have directly implicated the meaning of key terms such as “reasonable”, “in the interests of” , “public order” , “morality” , “decency” and “defamation” . Through these cases, the Court has developed an extensive jurisprudence, in which questions about the nature and purpose of free speech in a democracy, have played a central role. There is, however, another set of cases, where a prior question has been at issue: is an impugned law, which admittedly curtails someone’s speech, a restriction upon it? Or, in other word, does everything that may affect my speech also, for that reason, affect my freedom of speech? To answer this question, one must first answer another question: what does the word “freedom” mean, in the phrase “freedom of speech”? This enquiry goes to the heart of Article 19(1)(a), and is inescapably moral and political. As we shall see, however, unlike its 19(2) cases, the Court has largely evaded the issue, and attempted to screen a set of moral and political choices by invoking seemingly “neutral”, objective concepts, to settle the issue.

Asian Affairs, 2018

The author does not provide an overarching policy that India follows. He does, however, argue that India’s interests are best served by the somewhat paradoxical strategy of engaging with all major powers while limiting their role and influence in Asia. The importance of dealings with Russia and its lasting influence are conspicuous by their absence. Nevertheless the book does what it says on the cover and is an interesting account by a key Indian foreign-policy player.

Australian Journal of Human Rights, 2016

This book review examines Gautam Bhatia's Offend, Shock, or Disturb: Free Speech under the Indian Constitution (Oxford University Press, 2016).

2013

2022

India is a democratic country and unlike some other countries where the citizens are not allowed to express their views and expression. In India the citizens are guaranteed of freedom of speech and expression under Article 19 (1)(a) of the Indian constitution under which people are free to express their views but this right is not absolute there are some restrictions mentioned in the constitution.

2017

Freedom of expression in India has been enshrined in the Article 19 1 (a) of the Indian Constitution which the country conceived in 1950. It has been more than 60 years and the Indian State seen a lot of socio-political changes, on ideological, philosophical and physical level. With time, the conflict between the State‘s and the citizens‘ notion about various constitutional terms have come to surface among which the Freedom of Expression constitutes an important place. The conflict became visible and more explicit during the controversy in New Delhi‘s Jawaharlal Nehru University in 2016. This study aims to explore and understand the redefined notion of freedom of expression and its various limitations in the contemporary scenario of the post-Globalized India with the help of the narrative brought forth by the English News Websites‘ editorials on the JNU controversy. It‘s an attempt to understand how these major news organisations intend to perceive the validity of the free speech in institutes of higher learning‘.

According to article 19(1) all citizens shall have the right to freedom of speech and expression. This right to freedom of speech and expression is subject to the restriction which may be imposed by the state under Article 19(2), Article 19)(1) (a)is based on the provisions of Amendment 1 of the Constitution of U.S.A Freedom of speech and Expression should be taken to mean the right to express ones convictions and opinions freely by words of mouth, writing, printing picture or in any other manner. Democracy is for the people of the people and by the people it is the most need from of govt. in which people of the country have liberty of that expression utterance and discussion and people are at liberty to express their views freely without any fear the voice of the man is heard and accepted if it is valuable. Every one feels that he is a part an parcel of the country and his thought is carried out in administration. Freedom of expression includes Freedom of speech, Freedom of express. According to Hidayatullah,-Freedom of speech and expression is that cherished right on which our democracy rests and is meant for the expression of free opinion to change political or social conditions or for the advancement of human knowledge‖ This liberty is accepted under human right by UNO and the same is incorporated in the preamble of the constitution. Freedom of press is part and parcel of the right of freedom of speech and expression because press reflect the general thinning of the masses. Right to life include right of expression because if expression of the people is not reflected than no freedom is available in the country .In any

2019

In recent times, we have witnessed a spike in cases of hate speech, delivered either by the politicians or by the media that has resulted in violence among the public. Sensational reporting and discourse on critical issues just for the sake of viewership and notoriety has resulted in the tarnishing of an individual or community's image. This research examines the work of various authors and columnists, published on reputable websites. It is done in order to check the contemporary state of freedom of expression and the critical conditions of working journalists in India. The research also studies the status of freedom of the press and the upsurge in instances of hate speech in current times. The purpose of the study is to answer how the Indian government is restraining the individual's right to express, how the Indian politicians and media are liable for hate speeches by presenting biased views and prompted news, respectively. It demonstrates instances of hate speech where a ...

This paper focuses on the curious case of Aseem Trivedi related to freedom of speech and expression in India. He is best known for his anti corruption campaign cartoons against corruption. The website of his anti corruption campaign Cartoons Against Corruption was banned by Mumbai Police in Dec, 2011. The paper analyses the case with respect to article 19 (1) of an Indian Constitution and sees its implications, related cases and the future prospectus.