What in news?
Supreme Court recently upheld the ban on “Basava Vachana Deepthi”.
How did the issue evolve?
- Maate Mahadevi’s book “Basava Vachana Deepthi”, was banned by the Karnataka government in 1998 as the contents were thought to hurt religious sentiments of ‘Veera Shaivas’.
- The government had then invoked Section 95 of CrPC – that allows for the suspension of publications on certain grounds.
- The book had allegedly changed the original words in Lord Basaveshwara’s “Vachanas” to suit the author’s world view.
What are its Implications?
- The current verdict is a victory for intolerant attitudes.
- This also implies that expressions deserve protection only when it raises no opposition.
- Religious passion has effectively been exempted from the regular mandates of democracy.
- It also highlights the fact that governments in India can ban books with ease as once Section 95 is invoked - the onus is on the author to disprove it in courts.
What is needed?
- For a book to be banned, it should be established beyond doubt that – “book attempts to insult religious beliefs with definitive hateful intentions”.
- In a just & tolerant society, the courts are expected to take the narrowest possible reading into laws seeking an outright ban.
- The preservation of individual autonomy is an essential requirement of a legitimate government.
- The court must therefore recognise that the right to freedom of speech is a liberty central to achieving an equal society.
Source: The Hindu
