New Delhi: Hours after the Supreme Court put hold on the contentious sedition law, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi welcomed the decision saying that “telling the truth is patriotism, not treason.”
Taking to Twitter, the senior Congress leader wrote in Hindi, “Telling the truth is patriotism, not treason. Speaking the truth is patriotism, no treason. Listening to the truth is Rajdharma, to crush the truth is arrogance. Do not fear!”
The apex court on Wednesday had put hold on the sedition law and urged the Centre and States to refrain from registering any FIRs invoking Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code. The Supreme Court has further allowed the Centre to re-examine and reconsider the provisions of Section 124A of the IPC which criminalises the offence of sedition. The court said that no case will be registered under Section 124A of the IPC until the exercise of re-examination is completed.
READ HERE: SC Puts Sedition Law On Hold, Asks Centre And States Not To Register Any FIRs Under Section 124A
Reacting to the decision, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju had said that while he respected the court and its independence, there is a “Lakshman Rekha that must be respected by all organs of the state in letter and spirit.”
Other members of the Congress party also welcomed the decision of the apex court. Rajya Sabha MP and Congress member Anil Sharma tweeted, “Welcoming the historic Supreme Court order keeping in abeyance the law on sedition until the completion of the judicial review. The colonial era law has of late been abused and frequently invoked as a weapon to suppress dissent and fundamental rights of the citizens.”
“Speaking “truth to power” is not sedition but true Nationalism!” tweeted Congress General Secretary, Randeep Surjewala.