-The Hindu 'It invades right to free speech, every expression used in it is nebulous' Section 66A of the Information Technology Act is unconstitutional in its entirety, the Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday striking down a "draconian" provision that had led to the arrests of many people for posting content deemed to be "allegedly objectionable" on the Internet. "It is clear that Section 66A arbitrarily, excessively and disproportionately invades the right of free...

-The Hindu ‘Liberty of speech, expression cardinal concepts of paramount significance in a democracy' Tuesday's verdict is a victory for a loose coalition of young lawyers, Internet activists and researchers who filed separate petitions but helped each other with backroom work and creating public opinion over the last two years. Among the young lawyers who argued the case is Mishi Choudhary, a technology lawyer and founding director of the non-profit, Software Legal Centre,...

-The Hindu Union Communications and Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Tuesday hinted that the government could bring out new, improved guidelines if security establishments demanded that the IT Act be strengthened in the wake of the quashing of its Section 66A by the Supreme Court. He, however, added this will be done "objectively" after the "widest consultation." "National security is of utmost importance. If, in the light of the Supreme Court...

-The Hindu For two years, national political parties have defied the RTI Act that they themselves passed. They have not sought legal remedy either by appealing against the CIC order declaring them to be Public Authorities. If lawmakers defy the law in this fashion, it sets a bad precedent. Political parties should be more accountable if they break the law, not less Six national parties in India, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP),...

-The Hindu With its judgment to strike down a legal provision for violating freedom of speech, the Supreme Court has paved the way for thoughtful jurisprudence in the age of the Internet While describing Sec.124A of the IPC (sedition) as the "prince among the political sections designed to suppress the liberty of the citizen", Mahatma Gandhi offered us an ironic way of thinking about liberty-curbing laws through the metaphor of illegal tyrants....