conclusion that the burden of proof was on the respondent (Attorney
General) to prove that allegations made against the petitioner, that what
he uttered prejudiced the community interest and the limitation of his
rights by being prosecuted for the criminal offence of sedition was
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justifiable and acceptable in a free and democratic society. The same
test was applied to the other impugned provisions of the law complained
about and ultimately, the court found in favour of the petitioner, since
the respondent failed to discharge his burden.
The complaints raised in this petition go further into the rights of
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citizens that have been brought about by technological advancement in
the use of new media: Facebook, Skype, Twitter and others, and mobile
money transactions. The jurisprudence in that regard all over the world
is nascent. But it still suggests that this courts has to render a strict
construction of the restrictions in Article 43 (2) (c) with regard to Article
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29 (1) of the Constitution.
The Supreme Court of India considered the legality and constitutionality
of the total shut down of telecommunications and the internet in the
Jamu and Kashmir Region in August 2019 in the case of Anura dha
Bhasin & Others v Union of India, Writ Petition (Civil) No. 1031 of
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2019.
The matter was about the total shutdown of the internet and restrictions
of movement in the Jamu Kashmir Region which the Government of
India claimed was to protect public order, amidst the escalation of the
decades-long dispute between the two countries. This followed the
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issuance of the Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir)
Order, which stripped Jammu and Kashmir of its special status that it
had enjoyed since 1954, making that country fully subservient to all
provisions of the Constitution of India.
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