New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday said Parliament has the “absolute prerogative” to enact a law and it is not bound by the undertaking which may have been given by the Centre before the court.
The observations came from a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi which was hearing pleas questioning the validity of Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Section 152 of BNS deals with the acts endangering sovereignty, unity and integrity of India.
One of the advocates appearing for the petitioners said Section 152 reintroduces Section 124A (sedition) of the erstwhile Indian Penal Code.
In May 2022, a three-judge bench of the apex court had put on hold the colonial-era penal law on sedition till an “appropriate” government forum re-examines it and directed the Centre and states to not register any fresh FIR invoking the offence.
On Friday, the lawyer said in 2022, the Centre had given an undertaking before the top court that they would review the sedition law.
The counsel said the government cannot reintroduce the provision in BNS after giving an undertaking before the court.
“The Union of India may have given an undertaking before the court but Parliament is not bound by it,” the bench said, adding, “Parliament has the absolute prerogative to enact a law”.
The counsel then referred to Section 173 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and said it violates the apex court’s Lalita Kumari judgement which mandates registration of FIR if the information discloses commission of a cognizable offence.
The lawyer argued that section 173 allows the police to conduct a preliminary enquiry to ascertain whether there exists a prima facie case for proceeding in a matter.
Observing that the Lalita Kumari verdict has been misused a lot, the bench said, “Sometimes judgments are delivered sitting in ivory towers.”
The bench said Lalita Kumari verdict also says that a preliminary inquiry may be conducted to ascertain whether cognizable offence is disclosed or not.
It posted the matter for hearing after the Holi vacations.
Last year, the apex court issued notice to the Centre on a separate PIL against the validity of Section 152 of the BNS.
