CPI(M) senior leader calls Kerala Police Act amendment by Pinarayi Vijayan govt a "lapse"
Even as the Kerala government has announced that it will not implement the amended Kerala Police Act, senior CPM leader has on Wednesday slammed his own party
- India News
- 3 min read
Even as the Kerala government has announced that it will not implement the amended Kerala Police Act, senior CPM leader has on Wednesday has slammed his own party and Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan. Senior CPM leader MA Baby while addressing media, said that the Kerala government invited criticism by hastily amending the Police Act. “Bringing in an amendment that could invariably invite criticism was itself a lapse,” he said.
“What happened before that need not be discussed. Soon after the lapse became evident, the chief minister issued a statement making it clear that the same would not be enacted. There are, however, a few technical issues in this regard that the government will surely address,” Baby added.
Vijayan: 'Can criticise within Constitutional limits'
This is in contrast to Vijayan's statement defending it on Sunday saying, "The new amendment to the Kerala Police Act will not in any way be used against free speech or impartial media activity. Anyone is free to make any strong criticism within the limits of the Constitution and the legal system. In addition to media freedom, the government has a responsibility to protect the individual liberty and dignity guaranteed by the Constitution."
What is Kerala's ordinance on 'offensive' talk?
On Saturday, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan signed the Kerala Police Act Amendment ordinance that incorporates a new Section 118 (A). The amendment to the police act says that if the government finds any media platform including social media producing, publishing, or propagating content that could threaten, insult or harm an individual, they will be punished with a fine of Rs 10,000, imprisonment of five years or both. The LDF government has said that this amendment was done to 'control cyberbullying'. Kerala DGP Lokanath Behera said that a special Standard Operating Procedure will be prepared before taking action on the amendment to ensure the ordinance is not 'misused'.
Congress & BJP questions LDF government
Reacting to the ordinance, Congress senior leader and former Union Minister P Chidambaram expressed his shock and asked if CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury will defend the "atrocious decision". Similarly, Kerala BJP President K Surendran said that the CM was ' trying to control social & mainstream media by bringing this draconian Act'. In the barrage of opposition to the new law, CPI (M) tweeted that the law was being reconsidered now.
In 2015, the Supreme Court had struck down section 66-A of the IT Act and Section 118(D) of the Kerala Police Act as unconstitutional and had stated that it was against freedom of expression. However, the LDF government of Kerala claims that the Centre has not introduced any other legal framework in place of the act and in such a scenario, the police are "unable to deal effectively with crimes committed through social media". Several rights activists, lawyers and BJP are planning to challenge the ordinance.
Published By : Navashree Nandini
Published On: 25 November 2020 at 11:17 IST