Rita Mae Brown, the American writer quotes, "A right is what can't be taken from you." But the Bharat sarkar is hellbent on snatching all rights , the first and foremost being the right to free speech. But thanks to recent judgements by the Supreme Court and High Courts there is a glimmer of hope yet. The SC recently threw out a case filed by the government against Imran Pratapgarhi, a Congress office bearer over a poem he had written awhile back. Over the decades the SC has consistently expanded the scope of FoE as part of Articles 19 and 21. The Court mentioned that the standards of FoE can't be decided by those who always perceive criticism as a threat to their power or position. Secondly if you find some speech objectionable, your response should be counter-speech based on logic, not outright suppression or tyrannical police action. Thirdly restrictions cannot overshadow freedoms guaranteed under Article 19(1). Fourth, all judges must protect fundamental rights in an unbiased manner. In a related development, social activist Rama Kankonkar, secured bail. It is a travesty of justice that 'grant of bail' is a cause of cheer when there was no case against the individual to begin with.
