To put it gently, it was definitely most astounding, anguishing and appalling to see that on August 12, 2025 that is the day the Supreme Court had issued notice on “The Wire’s” newspaper petition challenging the constitutionality of the new sedition law and protected its journalists which also included the founding editor named Siddharth Varadarajan who earlier was with prestigious “The Hindu” newspaper from any “coercive action” by the Assam police in a case that had been filed in Morigaon in July came a fresh shocker as the Guwahati Crime Branch summoned Siddharth Varadarajan and senior journalist Karan Thapar in a fresh second ‘sedition’ FIR case that had been filed by the State police amid controversy over an article that had been published pertaining to “Operation Sindoor” which is certainly beyond a straw of doubt legally unsustainable. It must be disclosed here that the summons was received at “The Wire’s” office in New Delhi on August 14. On August 18, an identical summons was received in the name of Karan Thapar for the same FIR. It must be noted that the summons for Siddharth Varadarajan had been issued by the police inspector Soumarjyoti Ray under Section 35(3), BNSS that referred to an FIR (03/2025) that had been registered at the Crime Branch, Panbazar, Guwahati, under Sections 152, 196, 197(1)(D)/3(6), 353, 45 and 61.
It is most baffling to see that while the FIR that had been registered against Siddharth Varadarajan in Morigaon on July 11, 2025 pertained to a complaint that had been filed by a BJP officeholder over a story that had been published in “The Wire” on June 28, 2025 (IAF Lost Fighter Jets to Pak Because of Political Leadership’s Constraints’: Indian Defence Attache), it is not apparent what article or video the Crime Branch FIR relates to. We need to note here that a Bench of Apex Court comprising of Hon’ble Mr Justice Surya Kant and Hon’ble Mr Justice Joymalya Bagchi issued a directive that had explicitly restrained the Assam Police from proceeding with any such coercive measures. In hindsight, it may be also recalled here that Hon’ble Mr Justice Joymalya Bagchi in his earlier stint as a lawyer had most successfully argued before a Special Bench of the Calcutta High Court against the West Bengal government’s arbitrary ban on Dwikhondito that was a book that had been authored by the eminent Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen disliked by hardline Islamic fundamentalists.
By the way, we also need to note that the interim order from the Apex Court granting protection from coercive action came in response to a writ petition that had been filed by the ‘Foundation for Independent Journalism’ which operates ‘The Wire’ newspaper website alongside Siddharth Varadarajan. It must be laid bare that the petition had challenged the constitutional validity of Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita which is a provision that has been perceived by the petitioners as overly broad and potentially repressive. The petitioners had vehemently argued that the sweeping language of Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita threatens the freedom of expression and press independence, citing serious concerns that it mirrors vestiges of colonial-era sedition laws.
There can be just no gainsaying that media is the fourth pillar of Indian democracy and journalists must be protected from arbitrary arrests and detention because they are not terrorists or some criminals! It was very rightly pointed out by Albert Camus that, “A free press can be good or bad, but, most certainly, without freedom, a press will never be anything but bad.” No denying it!
It must be certainly taken into account that the senior counsel Nitya Ramakrishnan who represented the petitioners had argued before the Bench in Supreme Court that Section 152’s vague wording creates a “chilling effect” on journalistic freedom. Nitya also informed the Apex Court that the FIR was kept a secret and it was only through well-placed sources that it became possible to learn of the complaint that had been made, the date of the FIR and so also the criminal sections that had been invoked. It is entirely in the fitness of things that the Supreme Court has shielded Siddharth Varadarajan from coercive prosecution and has decided to delve into the broader constitutional questions that engulfs Section 152 and its implications that it has for democracy and free speech. It needs no rocket scientist to conclude that Assam police action in arbitrarily invoking sedition law against senior and eminent journalists in second case is legally unsustainable and deserves to be set aside most promptly! There can be just no denying or disputing it!
Sanjeev Sirohi
