In a landmark judgment on Thursday, the Lahore High Court (LHC) declared sedition laws as ultra vires of the Constitution as it struck down Section 12-A of the Pakistan Penal Code 1860. Justice Shahid Karim announced the reserved verdict after completing proceedings and hearing detailed arguments on multiple pleas requesting to declare the sedition law null and void. The petitioners had requested the court to strike down the said section which is not only contrary to the Constitution but also against its real essence. Read Sedition — an arcane notion in democracy Though politicians and journalists are the main victims of sedition charges, the federal government defended Section 124-A, saying that "the section imposed a valid restriction to free speech as long as any spoken or written words have the intention or tendency to create disorder or disturb public peace by resorting to violence against the respective governments”. The lawyers representing the federation strongly opposed the arguments of the petitioner’s counsels arguing that the sedition laws were used "in accordance with the law". During earlier proceedings, the law ministry had stated that "it is a well-established fact that the right of freedom of speech under Article 19 of the Constitution is not an absolute and unfettered right but is subject to the reasonable restriction imposed by law in the interest of the glory of Islam or the integrity, security or defence of Pakistan or any part thereof, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality, or in relation to contempt of court, the commission of or incitement to an offeņce". Notably, the law states that it concerns "whoever by words, either spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards, the federal or provincial government established by law". On the other hand, the petitioners’ counsels argued that usage of the said section is tantamount to depriving the people of their basic right of freedom of expression. Read More ATC clears MNA Ali Wazir in sedition case The instant petition called into question the constitutionality, validity, reasonability, relevance and legitimacy of the law criminalising “sedition”. It submitted that Section 124-A is "unconstitutional and ultra vires the constitution as the same, brazenly and patently contravenes Articles 8, 9, 14, 16, 17, 19 & 19-A ". The petitioners argued that since 1947, the law in question has been "recklessly used in Pakistan as a tool of exploitation to curb the right to free speech and expression" and that it is "an illegitimate limitation and restriction on the legitimate, legal and lawful exercise of" ones constitutionally guaranteed rights. "Over the past few years various politicians, journalists and activists have been booked under Section 124-A of PPC 1860," the petition furthered. "With every passing day, the intensity of registration of FIRs under Section 124-A is snowballing," it added, "almost every criticism of the government or state institutions has been treated as an offence under Section 124-A by the law enforcement agencies". The petition underlined that sedition laws served "as a notorious tool for suppression of dissent, free speech and criticism in free and independent Pakistan". Also Read Media bodies concerned over FIA’s bid to invoke ‘black law’ Petitioner Haroon Farooq cited the examples of lawmakers and political figures like Mohsin Dawar, Ali Wazir and Shahbaz Gill as well as various prominent journalists including Arshad Sharif, Khawar Ghumman, Adeel Raja and Sadaf Abdul Jabbar and several others. Farooq had maintained that most of the aforementioned were facing charges under the sedition laws that were based on "politically motivated", "vague", "arbitrary" and "subjective" interpretations of Section 124-A by the law enforcement agencies. In addition to declaring the section null and void, in the interim and during the pendency of the instant petition, the petitioners sought the court's intervention in restraining the respondents from registering any FIRs, or undertaking any coercive measure in sedition cases under Section 124-A PPC, 1860.
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