India taken over by sedition law

Indian authorities have slapped sedition charges against villagers for allegedly cheering for Pakistan's victory over India during the finals in the Champions Trophy, an international cricket tournament.

In that regard, Police in central India arrested 15 Muslim men and charged them with sedition which is punishable by life in prison. The men, aged 19 between 35, were arrested from Burhanpur, a district in central Madhya Pradesh after locals lodged a complaint claiming that these men had raised pro-Pakistan slogans and lit firecrackers after the match had ended on Sunday night.

An officer with knowledge of the case has noted that the accused have also been charged with criminal conspiracy and added that the celebrations continued for hours in a sensitive locality. The incident took place in a locality where about 60% of its population is Muslim.  The men were presented before a court on Tuesday and sent to jail pending trial.

Similar incidents

This is not the first time that cricket fans have been arrested in India and Pakistan for supporting the rival teams or players.

In 2014, about 60 Kashmiri college students watching an India-Pakistan match in the hostel of an Uttar Pradesh college were charged with sedition for cheering the Pakistani team after India lost the Asia Cup match. The police later withdrew the charges but the students were still accused of promoting enmity between rivalling groups.

Bangladesh too has seen similar incidents. In 2014, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) banned Bangladeshi fans from carrying rival country flags in the stadium. The order came into effect after images surfaced that showed Bangladeshi locals waving the Pakistani flag during the said Asia Cup.

A Pakistani man was arrested in 2016 for waving an Indian flag after his idol Indian batsman Virat Kohli scored a match-winning century.

Analysis

In India, sedition is an offence which may result in the surrender of passports, ineligibility for government jobs, and even life imprisonment.

In India, people can be charged with sedition for liking a Facebook post, criticizing a yoga guru, cheering a rival cricket team, drawing cartoons, asking a provocative question in a university exam, or not standing up in a cinema when the national anthem is being played.

In 2012 and 2013, an astonishing number of 23,000 men and women who protested against a nuclear power plant in Tamil Nadu were held for "waging war against the state". 9,000 of them were charged with sedition.

Legal experts say it is among the most misused laws in the country. South Asian neighbours India and Pakistan have a history of hostile relations and that translates to rivalry during sporting events.

Assessment

India needs to reassess the existence of the sedition law as it is vaguely-worded and viewed as draconian. Under the Indian constitution, citizens are guaranteed the freedom of speech and expression, and that ought to be upheld. Our assessment is that dissent is imperative to any functioning democracy and that shouldn’t be threatened.

Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way little else does. It speaks to the youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than the government in breaking down racial barriers. — Nelson Mandela