'Ruling party almost endorsing hate speech': Former SC judge

Against the backdrop of alleged hate speech at a Haridwar event making headlines, a former judge of the Supreme Court criticised authorities and ruling parties.

Speaking at the inauguration of the DM Harish School of Law, Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman compared the cases of stand-up comedians being booked while there is reluctance among authorities to act against those indulging in hate speech. "We also have, unfortunately, the higher echelons of the ruling party not only being silent on hate speech but almost endorsing it," he said. The sedition law is colonial in nature, and has no place in the Indian Constitution, he added.

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Between December 17 and 19 last year, a dharma sansad or religious assembly was held in Uttarakhand's Haridwar. The speakers have been accused of calling for violence against the Muslim community. After a gap of many weeks, police arrested two of the accused - Jitendra Tyagi aka Waseem Rizvi, and religious leader Yati Narsinghanand.

This came after the Supreme Court agreed to hear a PIL on the alleged hate speech and asked the Uttarakhand government to brief it about the action taken.