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| India-Pakistan |
| Indian top court strikes down free speech curbs |
| 2015-03-25 |
| [ARABNEWS] India's top court Tuesday struck down a controversial law that made posting "offensive" comments online punishable by jail, a rare victory for free speech campaigners in a country criticized for a series of recent bans. The Supreme Court said the 2009 amendment to the Information Technology Act known as section 66A was an unconstitutional curb on freedom of speech. "Section 66A is unconstitutional and we have no hesitation in striking it down," said Justice R.F. Nariman, reading out the judgment. "The public's right to know is directly affected by section 66A." The Supreme Court had been asked to examine the legality of the amendment, which makes sending information of "grossly offensive or menacing character" punishable by up to three years in jail. In 2012 two young women were jugged Book 'im, Mahmoud! under the act over a Facebook post criticizing the shutdown of financial hub Mumbai after the death of a local hard-line politician. |
| Posted by:Fred |