FIXING THE CONTOURS OF FREE SPEECH: A CASE OF ACTIVE INTERVENTION BY SUPREME COURT IN Nullifying Section 66A OF IT ACT

Dr Moushumi Pattnaik

Volume : V, Issue : VIII, August - 2015

FIXING THE CONTOURS OF FREE SPEECH: A CASE OF ACTIVE INTERVENTION BY SUPREME COURT IN Nullifying Section 66A OF IT ACT

Dr Moushumi Pattnaik

Abstract :

<p>&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;Protagonists of free speech almost accept without reservation that unfettered liberty would degenerate into authoritarianism. Therefore the &amp;quot;reasonable restrictions&amp;quot; clause attached to Fundamental Rights not only delimits the absoluteness of such rights but also delineates its scope for the establishment of an egalitarian and just social order. But an excess of such restrictions falling outside the constitutional purview poses a serious challenge to basic human liberties. The amendment of Section 66 of IT Act (2008) inserted Section 66A which endorsed new forms of limitations to curb free speech on Internet. This paved the way for a series of arrests purely on political grounds and a host of PILs from the active citizenry and intervention by the judiciary thereof, through landmark judgments to restore freedom.&lt;/p&gt;</p>