EVOLUTION OF FREEDOM OF SPEECH UNDER INDIAN CONSTITUTION
By-Guneet Kamboj
If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent, we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter-
George Washington
As far as from pre-colonial era till up-to-date Indian people enjoy the freedom of speech as it was guaranteed by them by their constitution. But the story was not the same at the time of British colonial rule over India. They did not grant freedom of speech to any individual in India because they were afraid that it would be used against them, and their crown could fall. Whoever circulated false propaganda against the crown in the name of freedom of speech is charged with sedition and suffered serious consequences. Because of such act, the Indian constitution framers gives much more importance to the ignored Indian people and give some rights of speech so that they can raise their voice against unlawful activities that are against them, and they are deprived of from such a long decade.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Freedom of speech and expression has a long running history that precedes modern international human rights instruments. It is analyzed that the ancient Athenian democratic principle of free speech may have emerged in the late 6th century BC. Freedom of speech was vindicated by Erasmus and Milton. Edward Coke claimed freedom of speech as “an ancient custom of parliament”. England bill of right 1689 legally established the constitutional rights of freedom of speech in parliament which is still in effect. The universal declaration of human rights was adopted in the year 1948 also states that everyone should have the freedom to express their ideas and opinions. Freedom of speech and expression is recognized as a human right under article 19. The framers and architects of the constitution of India have also borrowed the idea of freedom of speech from the democratic ideas laid in the American constitution. Freedom of speech and expression is a significant feature of the American constitution.
MEANING OF FREEDOM OF SPEECH
The Constitution of India guarantees various fundamental rights to its citizens. One such important right is the right to freedom under Article 19. This includes the right to freedom of speech and expression, the right to assemble peacefully and without arms, freedom to form associations and unions, the right to move freely throughout the territory of India, right to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India and right to practice any profession or to carry on any occupation, trade, or business. Under this research work, it closely concerned with Article 19(1)(a) and 19(2) of the Constitution of India. Article 19(1)(a)guarantees that all citizens have the right to freedom of speech and expression. This right is available only to the citizens of India and not available to any person who is not a citizen of India i.e., foreign nationals. Article 19(2) of the constitution authorizes the government to impose or by law reasonable restrictions upon the freedom of speech and expression in the social and political interest for the welfare of public order.
The freedom of speech and expression includes the liberty to propagate not one view only. It includes the right to propagate or publish the views of other people. Freedom of expression has four broad special purposes to serve:
1. It helps an individual to attain self-fulfillment.
2. It assists in the discovery of truth.
3. It strengthens the capacity of an individual to participate in decision-making.
4. It provides a mechanism by which it establishes a relation between stability and social change.
GROUNDS OF RESTRICTION
It is the reasonableness of the restriction which is to be determined by the court and reasonable by the law. The court has only to see whether the restriction imposed on citizens are reasonable. It is necessary to maintain and preserve freedom of speech and expression in a democracy. No freedom can be absolute or completely unrestricted. Article 19(2) specifies the grounds to which reasonable restrictions on the freedom of speech and expression can be imposed.
1. Security of State Friendly relation with the foreign state
2. Public order
3. Decency or morality
4. Contempt of court
5. Defamation
6. Sedition The ground was added in the first amendment in 1951. Freedom of speech and expression cannot confer a right to incite people to commit an offense. Sedition means all the activities whether by words or writing which are done against the tranquility of state and lead ignored person against the government. Also, the other important ground that restricts the freedom of speech is defamation against the person.
Defamation consists in exposing a man to hatred, ridicule, or contempt. Public Order was This ground was also added by the Constitution (First Amendment) Act, 1951. The concept of ‘public order’ is wider than ‘security of the state’. ‘Public order’ is an expression of wide connotation and signifies that state of tranquility that prevails among the members of political society as a result of internal regulations enforced by the Government which they have established. Public order is something more than ordinary maintenance of law and order. ‘Public order is synonymous with public peace, safety, and tranquility. The test for determining whether an act affects law and order, or public order is to see whether the act leads to the disturbances of the current of life of the community so as to amount to a disturbance of the public order or whether it affects merely an individual being the tranquility of the society undisturbed. Anything that disturbs public tranquility or public peace disturbs public order. Thus, communal disturbances and strikes promoted with the sole object of causing unrest among workmen are offenses against public order.
Public order thus implies the absence of violence and an orderly state of affairs in which citizens can peacefully pursue their normal avocation of life. Thus, creating internal disorder or rebellion would affect public order. However, mere criticism of the Government does not necessarily disturb public order. In its external aspect ‘public safety’ means protection of the country from foreign aggression. Under public order, the State would be entitled to prevent propaganda for a state of war with India. The words ‘in the interest of public order’ include not only such utterances as are directly intended to lead to disorder but also those that have the tendency to lead to disorder.
THE NEED FOR PROTECTION OF FREEDOM OF SPEECH
Active participation in democracy- freedom of speech helps the citizens to actively participate in the smooth functioning and operation of democracy as it helps in proper decision making.
Expression of beliefs and attitudes- in a country where there exist people of different religions, caste, and creed; freedom of speech helps in the proper expression of beliefs and attitudes of different.
Self-fulfillment and development – the exchange of ideas and opinions effectively and freely assists in the healthy development of citizens and also provides significant self-fulfillment.
Open discussi1ons- in order to discover the truth and facilitate healthy and sound decision-making, open discussions significantly help in the running of a democracy and other political institutions contained within. Time and again, judicial precedents serve to reiterate the importance of freedom of speech which is one of the most quintessential fundamental rights enshrined under Part III of the Constitution of India.
Freedom of the press- the fundamental right of the freedom of the press implicit in the right to freedom of speech and it is essential for political liberty and proper function of democracy, as of now India is far behind in giving freedom to the press and promoting the idea of free and open media. When men cannot freely convey their thoughts to one another no freedom is secured. The press has no special rights which are not to be given or which are not exercised by individual capacity.
CONCLUSION
From this article, it can easily be concluded that the right to freedom of speech is one of the most important fundamental rights.it includes circulating one view by words or in writing or through advertisements and any other communication channel. It also comprises of right to information, freedom of the press, etc. Thus, this fundamental right has a vast scope. From the above case law analysis, it is evident that the Court has always placed a broad interpretation on the value and contents of Article 19(1)(a), making it subjective only to the restrictions permissible under Article 19(2). Efforts by intolerant authorities to curb or choke this freedom have always been firmly repelled, more so when public authorities have betrayed tyrannical tendencies.
REFRENCES-
https://www.history.com
https://blog.ipleaders.in/
https://www.thefire.org