The Court also said that though it cannot consider offence of sedition under Section 124A IPC since it has been kept in abeyance by Supreme Court, Imam's acts will qualify as sedition as per "normal dictionary meaning".
The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to accede to a request by the Central government to defer hearing the challenge to the validity of sedition law until the finalisation of new laws to replace existing criminal laws
The 22nd Law Commission of India headed by former Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court Ritu Raj Awasthi has recommended that Section 124A of IPC, which criminalises sedition, should be retained in the statute book.
The CJI D.Y. Chandrachud-led bench posted the hearing of the petitions to the second week of August, even as the petitioners emphasised the need to refer the case to a seven-judge bench.
The Central government Monday told the Supreme Court that the process to re-examine Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which criminalises sedition, is at an advanced stage.