Drop sedition law from penal code, demands Mumbai Press Club

Condemning the sedition charge against cartoonist Aseem Trivedi, the Mumbai Press Club today demanded that the section of sedition must be dropped from the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Daring the government to file sedition cases against them, filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, India Against Corruption (IAC) member Mayank Gandhi, and senior journalist Gurbir Singh posed holding printouts of Trivedi's cartoons.

Justice (Retd) Hosbet Suresh said that the law on sedition is a British act and compared it to draconian laws like TADA. "This law is outdated and it has to be scrapped," Justice Suresh said.

The law of sedition enacted during the British era has been scrapped even in England, though it has been retained in India, Suresh said.

India Against Corruption (IAC) member Mayank Gandhi who along with Team Anna member Arivind Kejriwal met Trivedi at the high security Arthur Road jail, said that the cartoonist has decided not to file a bail plea until the sedition charge against him is dropped.

"We will request cartoonist Trivedi to come out on bail and fight for a bigger cause to abolish sedition," Gandhi said.

Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt said that until the sedition law exists, people who are in power will always use it as a whip against the those who protest.

"Provisions of sedition should not be used against youngsters like Trivedi who intend to fight for freedom of expression and speech," Bhatt said, adding that he also urged Trivedi to come out of jail and fight a long battle to abolish the law of sedition. PTI