The Supreme Court on Monday observed that the time has come to reconsider the criminalisation of defamation, while hearing a plea linked to online news portal The Wire. A Bench comprising Justice MM Sundresh and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma made the observation during proceedings in a defamation case filed by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) professor Amita Singh. The case arose from a report published by The Wire in 2016, which alleged that Singh led a group of teachers who prepared a dossier portraying JNU as a “den of organised sex racket”.
“I think time has come to decriminalise all this…,” Justice Sundresh remarked during the hearing, as reported by Bar and Bench. Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing on behalf of The Wire, concurred with the court’s observation.
The petition was moved by the Foundation for Independent Journalism, which runs The Wire, challenging the summons issued to the portal and its political affairs editor Ajoy Ashirwad Mahaprashasta. The magistrate had first summoned the accused in 2017, but the Supreme Court later set it aside, directing a fresh review of the article in question.
Earlier this year, the magistrate again issued summons, which the Delhi High Court upheld on 7 May. This led to the fresh challenge before the apex court, Bar and Bench report stated.
At the outset of Monday’s hearing, the Bench questioned the delay in proceedings, asking, “How long will you go on dragging this?”
India Among Few Democracies with Criminal Defamation
Section 356 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) continues to make defamation a criminal offence, replacing Section 499 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). India remains among the few democracies that treat defamation as a crime, with most other jurisdictions restricting it to civil liability.
Notably, the Supreme Court had in 2016 upheld the constitutional validity of Section 499 of the IPC, after challenges mounted by political leaders including Subramanian Swamy, Rahul Gandhi, and Arvind Kejriwal.
During Monday’s hearing, Sibal reminded the court that a “similar matter is being considered” in Rahul Gandhi’s case, as per the report.
The Bench has now issued notice to Amita Singh in the present proceedings.
