Sedition law needed to combat anti-national elements, no proposal to scrap it: Centre

The Centre on Wednesday said there is no proposal to scrap the sedition law and asserted that it is needed "to effectively combat anti-national, secessionist and terrorist elements".

On being asked whether the government is mulling to scrap sedition law, Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai, in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, said: "There is no proposal to scrap the provision under the IPC dealing with the offence of sedition. There is a need to retain the provision to effectively combat anti-national, secessionist and terrorist elements."

The question was asked by lawmaker Banda Prakash of the TRS.

Section 124A of the IPC, which deals with sedition, states, "Whoever, words, either spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the Government established by law in India shall be punished with imprisonment for life, to which fine may be added, or with imprisonment which may extend to three years, to which fine may be added, or with fine."

The law on sedition was originally drafted by Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay and became a part of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in 1870.