New Delhi: Days after the principal of Ayodhya district’s government-run K.S. Saket Degree College lodged a complaint accusing six students of sedition, police said the charges have been dropped. However, it said that investigation into other charges, including rioting and criminal intimidation, will continue, Indian Express reported.

Principal N.D. Pandey had said that “indecent and anti-national slogans like Le ke rahenge azadi” had been raised inside the college premises on December 16. Given the college’s proximity to the Ramjanmabhoomi site, he said he needed to look out for “such anti-national activities” and couldn’t allow slogans “that are raised at Jawaharlal Nehru University”, according to news reports.

The six students — Sumit Tewari, Shesh Narayan Pandey, Imran Hashmi, Satwik Pandey, Mohit Yadav and Manoj Mishra — were booked for sedition on December 18 under IPC sections 124-A (sedition), 147 (rioting) and 506 (criminal intimidation), apart from charges of obstructing public servants.

Also read: Why the State Continues to Validate the Archaic Sedition Law

Section 124A of IPC

The sedition law, under section 124A IPC, is a legacy of the British Raj, which used it to stifle dissent and the national movement for freedom. It is defined as, “Whoever, by 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”.

As per the law, offenders 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.

In January, history student from Jawaharlal Nehru University Sharjeel Imam – who is among those who peacefully protested against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act – was booked for "sedition and other grave crimes" by at least five states. Imam spoke of cutting off road access to Assam from the North East during an anti-CAA protest.

Days after, activist Urvashi Chudawala was also booked for sedition by the Mumbai Police for allegedly raising "anti-national" slogans in support of Sharjeel Imam at an LGBTQ event held at the Azad Maidan in Mumbai.

Despite the sedition law being challenged in various courts, the government has continued to use the provisions in ways criticised by the courts. According to an analysis of National Crime Records Bureau data, arrests under the sedition law have spiked since 2014, with the police registering as many as 70 cases of sedition across the country in the year 2018.

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