The Evening Wrap: State not vicariously liable for statements of Ministers: SC

A Constitution Bench on January 3 held that the government cannot be held vicariously liable for the hurtful statements made by individual Ministers. Justice V. Ramasubramanian, speaking for himself, Justices S. Abdul Nazeer, BR Gavai, A.S. Bopanna, held that there was no need to impose “greater restrictions” on the free speech and expression of high public functionaries. The restrictions under Article 19(2) of the Constitution in free speech was exhaustive. Justice B.V. Nagarathna, in a separate opinion, highlighted that though there was an inalienable right to free speech, indiscriminate statements hurt ordinary citizens, including women. The judge held that it was a “no-brainer” that the state cannot be made vicariously liable for the personal comments of a hurtful nature of a Minister. But the State would be vicariously liable for disparaging comments made by a Minister in an official capacity. However, again, the state would not be collectively responsible for stray remarks made by a Minister inconsistent with the stand of the government. Justice Nagarathna, during the hearing, had said there was an unwritten rule of self-restraint for public functionaries to not “blabber” things which were “very disparaging or insulting” to fellow citizens. The five-judge Bench led by Justice Nazeer was examining whether guidelines should be framed to stop or even prevent Government Ministers, MPs, MLAs and even political leaders from making unguarded, derogatory and hurtful statements in public. Justice Nagarathna said there was an inherent constitutional restriction on persons holding responsible offices to follow a certain code of conduct. Such a self-imposed restraint was irrespective of the “reasonable restriction” on free speech. Attorney General R. Venkataramani, for the Union of India, had said the state should not be held vicariously liable for the hurtful statements made by individual Ministers. The situation would become “unmanageable” if this was done. There would be a flurry of petitions in courts against the state by persons claiming to have been wronged. He said the issue whether or not to make a separate law or include changes in the Indian Penal Code should be left to the Parliament. The reference to the Constitution Bench was made two years ago in April 2017. It sprouted from a petition filed by the family members of the Bulandshahr rape case victim against a former Minister’s public statements that the rape case was part of a political conspiracy against the then Akhilesh Yadav government. The Minister had subsequently apologised unconditionally in the apex court. But the court had decided to examine the question of imposing curbs on the free speech of public functionaries in sensitive matters. Anti-conversion law: Not all religious conversions are illegal, Supreme Court remarks The Supreme Court on January 3 observed that all religious conversions cannot be presumed by a State to be illegal while agreeing to hear a Madhya Pradesh government appeal against a High Court decision freezing a mandatory provision requiring a person who desires to convert to another faith to give 60 days’ prior intimation to the local District Magistrate. A Bench led by Justice M.R. Shah issued notice but refused to order an interim stay of the High Court order even as Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, for Madhya Pradesh, argued that “conversion in the country is based on marriage”. The provision under question is Section 10 of the Madhya Pradesh (Freedom of Religion) Act, 2021. Section 10(1) and (2) of the Act mandated that a person who desires to convert and a priest/person who intends to organise a conversion, respectively, should give a two-month prior declaration to the District Magistrate that the proposed change of religious faith is not motivated by force, undue influence, coercion or allurement. A person who wants to organise a conversion and refuses to give such a declaration would suffer penal consequences, which includes imprisonment of three to five years and costs of not less than ₹50,000. Mehta said, conversion largely happened in the country by marrying a person of another faith. The provision did not ban inter-faith marriage but only acted as a safeguard against forcible or illegal conversion. The law officer contended that Section 10 of the 2021 Act was in pari materia (on the same subject matter) with Section 5 of the Madhya Pradesh Dharma Swatantrya Adhiniyam of 1968, which was upheld by a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court in a judgment in Rev. Stainislaus versus State of Madhya Pradesh in 1977. Mehta submitted that the 1977 verdict had held that the word ‘propagate’ in Article 25 of the Constitution did not give “the right to convert another person to one’s own religion, but to transmit or spread one’s religion by an exposition of its tenets”. The Constitution Bench had held there was “no fundamental right to convert another person to one’s own religion”. Freedom of religion was not guaranteed in respect of one religion only, but covered all religions alike. He urged the court to at least restore the implementation of Section 10 of the 2021 Act to the extent that the intimation to District Magistrates may continue. He said the High Court had gravely erred in not considering the larger public interest involved against the conduct of illegal religious conversions through force or deceit. “But not all conversions are illegal…” Justice Shah remarked orally. The Bench said it would examine the petition and the question of granting interim relief in the next hearing on February 7. A series of petitions are being filed against laws enacted by States, including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, making it mandatory for persons seeking to convert to give prior declaration. On Monday, NGO Citizens for Justice and Peace approached the apex court in an identical case concerning an Uttarakhand law. Senior advocate C.U. Singh argued before another Bench led by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud that the State’s interference amounted to a curb on the fundamental right of a person to choose a partner of his or her choice. The Chief Justice Bench has sought details of all such cases and their status in various High Courts. Singh, on Tuesday, had pointed out that such Acts were being enacted one after the other and contained identical provisions. In the current case, the Madhya Pradesh High Court, on November 14, had found strong prima facie reasons to grant citizens protection against the coercive action the State could take under Section 10 of the 2021 Act. “Section 10 makes it obligatory for a citizen desiring conversion to give a declaration in this regard to the District Magistrate, which in our opinion is ex facie unconstitutional… Thus, till further orders, the respondent [Madhya Pradesh] shall not prosecute adult citizens if they solemnise marriage on their own volition and shall not take coercive action for violation of Section 10 of Act of 2021,” the order had read. In December, the Gujarat Government, buoyed by an oral observation by the Supreme Court that forcible or fraudulent religious conversion would ultimately affect national security, had pushed for the revival of a provision in its State law which required a District Magistrate’s prior permission for converting or “taking part” in a ceremony involving religious conversion. The operation of Section 5 and several other key provisions of the Gujarat Freedom Of Religion Act, 2003 was stayed by the State High Court in August 2021. Now Aadhaar holders can update addresses online with consent of head of family Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has now allowed residents to update addresses in Aadhaar online with the consent of their head of family, an official statement said on Tuesday. The new process can be initiated after submitting proof of relationship documents like a ration card, mark sheet, marriage certificate, passport, etc. mentioning the name of both the applicant and head of family (HOF) and the relationship between them. The process requires OTP-based authentication by the HOF. In case proof of relationship document is not available, UIDAI provides for the resident to submit a self-declaration by the HOF in the UIDAI-prescribed format, as per the statement. “The HoF-based online address update in Aadhaar will be of great help to the relative(s) of a resident like children, spouse, parents, etc. who don’t have supporting documents in their own name to update the address in their Aadhaar. With people moving cities and towns due to various reasons within the country, such a facility will be beneficial for millions of people,” the statement said. The new option to update address is in addition to the existing address update facility using any valid proof of address document prescribed by UIDAI. “Any resident above the age of 18 can be a HOF for this purpose and can share his or her address with his or her relatives through this process,” the statement said. Residents can visit the ‘My Aadhaar’ portal for updating addresses online. Following this, the resident will be allowed to enter the Aadhaar number of the HOF, which will only be validated. No other information of the HOF’s Aadhaar will be displayed on the screen to maintain adequate privacy of HOF. Post successful validation of the Aadhaar number of HOF, the resident will be required to upload the proof of relationship document. “Residents have to pay a fee of ₹50 for the service. On successful payment, a service request number (SRN) would be shared with the resident, and an SMS would be sent to the HOF about the address request. “The HOF is to approve the request and give his or her consent by logging into the My Aadhaar portal within 30 days from the date of receiving the notification and the request will be processed,” the statement said. If the HOF rejects to share her or his address or does not accept or decline within the stipulated 30 days of SRN creation, the request would be closed. The resident, seeking an address update through this option, will be informed about the closure of the request via an SMS. In case the request is closed or rejected due to non-acceptance of the HOF or rejected during the process, the amount shall not be refunded to the applicant, the statement said. Rahul Gandhi a warrior, not afraid of govt’s might: Priyanka Gandhi Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on January 3 called her brother Rahul Gandhi a “warrior” and said he is not afraid of the might of the government which spent thousands of crores to destroy his image. Welcoming Gandhi and the Bharat Jodo Yatra at the Loni border as it entered Uttar Pradesh from Delhi, she said big industrialists like Adani and Ambani may have bought many a politician, PSUs and the media, but “they have not been, and will never be, able to buy my brother”. People say Gandhi does not feel cold even in winter, this is because “he is wearing the shield of truth,” the Congress leader said. Gandhi, who was constantly seen wearing white T-shirts even in Delhi winter during the yatra, has found media and politicians alike wondering why he does not feel cold. Vadra said she was proud of welcoming the yatra, which entered U.P. traversing 3,000 km from Kanyakumari. “Look at my elder brother, I take the maximum pride in you. Because the establishment put all its pressure. The government spent thousands of crores to destroy his image. But, he did not deter from the path of truth. Agencies were deployed but he did not feel afraid, as he is a warrior,” she said to thunderous applause at the Loni border in Ghaziabad. “Adani ji, Ambani ji brought big politicians, bought all PSUs, the media, but they could not buy my brother and will never be able to do so. I am proud of him and of everyone else,” she also said. Cash-strapped Pakistan announces early closure of markets, wedding halls to save energy Cash-strapped Pakistan on January 3 announced early closure of markets and wedding halls as part of a raft of measures under the energy conservation plan as the government struggled to revive the economy. Briefing the media after a meeting of the cabinet which approved the National Energy Conservation Plan to save energy and decrease dependence on imported oil, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said markets would close at 8.30 p.m. while wedding halls would shut doors by 10.00 p.m. respectively, which will “save us Rs 60 billion”. Announcing more measures, he said that manufacturing of incandescent bulbs would be stopped from February 1 while production of inefficient fans would be stopped from July. He said these measures would help to save another ₹22 billion. The government would also make the use of conical geysers mandatory within a year, which by using less gas would save ₹ 92 billion, and alternative use of street lights would save another ₹4 billion. Asif said that all government buildings and offices would also reduce use of energy under the plan and a policy to work from home would also be completed in up to 10 days. “No lights were on in the cabinet meeting today. The meeting was held in full sunlight,” he said, providing an example for the country to follow. Asif also said that the cabinet planned to conserve 30% of the electricity used by government departments, which would save ₹62 billion. In another step, Asif said that electric motorcycles would be introduced by the end of this year to help cut the import of fuel. “The plan to save energy is being enforced immediately and the cabinet will monitor it,” he said. Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman who accompanied the defence minister at the press conference said the plan would also help to tackle the climate change issue. “The world has been following this plan for a while and it is imperative for us to change our habits,” she said and asked businesses to cooperate. The measures to save energy come a day after the National Security Committee agreed that the revival of the economy is essential for national security. Pakistan’s economic situation is facing “severe headwinds” with inflation being forecast to stay high between 21-23% and the country’s fiscal deficit widening by more than 115% in the first four months (July-October) of the current fiscal year. Pakistan’s Ministry of Finance in its Monthly Economic Update and Outlook last week said that the economic growth is likely to remain below the budgeted target in FY23 due to devastation caused by floods. In Brief: The national executive of the BJP will meet in New Delhi for two days on January 16-17 and is tipped to endorse an extension in the term of its national president J.P. Nadda. The key organisational body of the party will deliberate on its strategy for the upcoming State assembly elections and take stock of its preparations of the next year Lok Sabha polls as well, party sources said on Tuesday. Nadda’s three-year term as the party president ends later this month. There is a strong possibility that his tenure may be extended in view of the coming elections. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 03 JANUARY 2023 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( State not vicariously liable for hurtful statements of Ministers; no need for greater restrictions on Ministers’ right to free speech: SC [A Constitution Bench on January 3 held that the government cannot be held vicariously]( liable for the hurtful statements made by individual Ministers. Justice V. Ramasubramanian, speaking for himself, Justices S. Abdul Nazeer, BR Gavai, A.S. Bopanna, held that there was no need to impose “greater restrictions” on the free speech and expression of high public functionaries. The restrictions under Article 19(2) of the Constitution in free speech was exhaustive. [A view of the Supreme Court of India. File] Justice B.V. Nagarathna, in a separate opinion, highlighted that though there was an inalienable right to free speech, indiscriminate statements hurt ordinary citizens, including women. The judge held that it was a “no-brainer” that the state cannot be made vicariously liable for the personal comments of a hurtful nature of a Minister. But the State would be vicariously liable for disparaging comments made by a Minister in an official capacity. However, again, the state would not be collectively responsible for stray remarks made by a Minister inconsistent with the stand of the government. Justice Nagarathna, during the hearing, had said there was an unwritten rule of self-restraint for public functionaries to not “blabber” things which were “very disparaging or insulting” to fellow citizens. The five-judge Bench led by Justice Nazeer was examining whether guidelines should be framed to stop or even prevent Government Ministers, MPs, MLAs and even political leaders from making unguarded, derogatory and hurtful statements in public. Justice Nagarathna said there was an inherent constitutional restriction on persons holding responsible offices to follow a certain code of conduct. Such a self-imposed restraint was irrespective of the “reasonable restriction” on free speech. Attorney General R. Venkataramani, for the Union of India, had said the state should not be held vicariously liable for the hurtful statements made by individual Ministers. The situation would become “unmanageable” if this was done. There would be a flurry of petitions in courts against the state by persons claiming to have been wronged. He said the issue whether or not to make a separate law or include changes in the Indian Penal Code should be left to the Parliament. The reference to the Constitution Bench was made two years ago in April 2017. It sprouted from a petition filed by the family members of the Bulandshahr rape case victim against a former Minister’s public statements that the rape case was part of a political conspiracy against the then Akhilesh Yadav government. The Minister had subsequently apologised unconditionally in the apex court. But the court had decided to examine the question of imposing curbs on the free speech of public functionaries in sensitive matters. Anti-conversion law: Not all religious conversions are illegal, Supreme Court remarks The [Supreme Court on January 3 observed that all religious conversions cannot be presumed by a State]( to be illegal while agreeing to hear a Madhya Pradesh government appeal against a High Court decision freezing a mandatory provision requiring a person who desires to convert to another faith to give 60 days’ prior intimation to the local District Magistrate. A Bench led by Justice M.R. Shah issued notice but refused to order an interim stay of the High Court order even as Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, for Madhya Pradesh, argued that “conversion in the country is based on marriage”. The provision under question is Section 10 of the Madhya Pradesh (Freedom of Religion) Act, 2021. Section 10(1) and (2) of the Act mandated that a person who desires to convert and a priest/person who intends to organise a conversion, respectively, should give a two-month prior declaration to the District Magistrate that the proposed change of religious faith is not motivated by force, undue influence, coercion or allurement. A person who wants to organise a conversion and refuses to give such a declaration would suffer penal consequences, which includes imprisonment of three to five years and costs of not less than ₹50,000. Mehta said, conversion largely happened in the country by marrying a person of another faith. The provision did not ban inter-faith marriage but only acted as a safeguard against forcible or illegal conversion. The law officer contended that Section 10 of the 2021 Act was in pari materia (on the same subject matter) with Section 5 of the Madhya Pradesh Dharma Swatantrya Adhiniyam of 1968, which was upheld by a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court in a judgment in Rev. Stainislaus versus State of Madhya Pradesh in 1977. Mehta submitted that the 1977 verdict had held that the word ‘propagate’ in Article 25 of the Constitution did not give “the right to convert another person to one’s own religion, but to transmit or spread one’s religion by an exposition of its tenets”. The Constitution Bench had held there was “no fundamental right to convert another person to one’s own religion”. Freedom of religion was not guaranteed in respect of one religion only, but covered all religions alike. He urged the court to at least restore the implementation of Section 10 of the 2021 Act to the extent that the intimation to District Magistrates may continue. He said the High Court had gravely erred in not considering the larger public interest involved against the conduct of illegal religious conversions through force or deceit. “But not all conversions are illegal…” Justice Shah remarked orally. The Bench said it would examine the petition and the question of granting interim relief in the next hearing on February 7. A series of petitions are being filed against laws enacted by States, including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, making it mandatory for persons seeking to convert to give prior declaration. On Monday, NGO Citizens for Justice and Peace approached the apex court in an identical case concerning an Uttarakhand law. Senior advocate C.U. Singh argued before another Bench led by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud that the State’s interference amounted to a curb on the fundamental right of a person to choose a partner of his or her choice. The Chief Justice Bench has sought details of all such cases and their status in various High Courts. Singh, on Tuesday, had pointed out that such Acts were being enacted one after the other and contained identical provisions. In the current case, the Madhya Pradesh High Court, on November 14, had found strong prima facie reasons to grant citizens protection against the coercive action the State could take under Section 10 of the 2021 Act. “Section 10 makes it obligatory for a citizen desiring conversion to give a declaration in this regard to the District Magistrate, which in our opinion is ex facie unconstitutional… Thus, till further orders, the respondent [Madhya Pradesh] shall not prosecute adult citizens if they solemnise marriage on their own volition and shall not take coercive action for violation of Section 10 of Act of 2021,” the order had read. In December, the Gujarat Government, buoyed by an oral observation by the Supreme Court that forcible or fraudulent religious conversion would ultimately affect national security, had pushed for the revival of a provision in its State law which required a District Magistrate’s prior permission for converting or “taking part” in a ceremony involving religious conversion. The operation of Section 5 and several other key provisions of the Gujarat Freedom Of Religion Act, 2003 was stayed by the State High Court in August 2021. Now Aadhaar holders can update addresses online with consent of head of family Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has now allowed residents to update addresses in Aadhaar online with the consent of their head of family, an official statement said on Tuesday. The new process can be initiated after submitting proof of relationship documents like a ration card, mark sheet, marriage certificate, passport, etc. mentioning the name of both the applicant and head of family (HOF) and the relationship between them. The process requires OTP-based authentication by the HOF. [Photo used for representation purpose only.] In case proof of relationship document is not available, UIDAI provides for the resident to submit a self-declaration by the HOF in the UIDAI-prescribed format, as per the statement. “The HoF-based online address update in Aadhaar will be of great help to the relative(s) of a resident like children, spouse, parents, etc. who don’t have supporting documents in their own name to update the address in their Aadhaar. With people moving cities and towns due to various reasons within the country, such a facility will be beneficial for millions of people,” the statement said. The new option to update address is in addition to the existing address update facility using any valid proof of address document prescribed by UIDAI. “Any resident above the age of 18 can be a HOF for this purpose and can share his or her address with his or her relatives through this process,” the statement said. Residents can visit the ‘My Aadhaar’ portal for updating addresses online. Following this, the resident will be allowed to enter the Aadhaar number of the HOF, which will only be validated. No other information of the HOF’s Aadhaar will be displayed on the screen to maintain adequate privacy of HOF. Post successful validation of the Aadhaar number of HOF, the resident will be required to upload the proof of relationship document. “Residents have to pay a fee of ₹50 for the service. On successful payment, a service request number (SRN) would be shared with the resident, and an SMS would be sent to the HOF about the address request. “The HOF is to approve the request and give his or her consent by logging into the My Aadhaar portal within 30 days from the date of receiving the notification and the request will be processed,” the statement said. If the HOF rejects to share her or his address or does not accept or decline within the stipulated 30 days of SRN creation, the request would be closed. The resident, seeking an address update through this option, will be informed about the closure of the request via an SMS. In case the request is closed or rejected due to non-acceptance of the HOF or rejected during the process, the amount shall not be refunded to the applicant, the statement said. Rahul Gandhi a warrior, not afraid of govt’s might: Priyanka Gandhi [Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on January 3 called her brother Rahul Gandhi a “warrior”]( and said he is not afraid of the might of the government which spent thousands of crores to destroy his image. Welcoming Gandhi and the Bharat Jodo Yatra at the Loni border as it entered Uttar Pradesh from Delhi, she said big industrialists like Adani and Ambani may have bought many a politician, PSUs and the media, but “they have not been, and will never be, able to buy my brother”. People say Gandhi does not feel cold even in winter, this is because “he is wearing the shield of truth,” the Congress leader said. Gandhi, who was constantly seen wearing white T-shirts even in Delhi winter during the yatra, has found media and politicians alike wondering why he does not feel cold. Vadra said she was proud of welcoming the yatra, which entered U.P. traversing 3,000 km from Kanyakumari. “Look at my elder brother, I take the maximum pride in you. Because the establishment put all its pressure. The government spent thousands of crores to destroy his image. But, he did not deter from the path of truth. Agencies were deployed but he did not feel afraid, as he is a warrior,” she said to thunderous applause at the Loni border in Ghaziabad. “Adani ji, Ambani ji brought big politicians, bought all PSUs, the media, but they could not buy my brother and will never be able to do so. I am proud of him and of everyone else,” she also said. Cash-strapped Pakistan announces early closure of markets, wedding halls to save energy Cash-strapped Pakistan on January 3 announced early closure of markets and wedding halls as part of a raft of measures under the energy conservation plan as the government struggled to revive the economy. Briefing the media after a meeting of the cabinet which approved the National Energy Conservation Plan to save energy and decrease dependence on imported oil, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said markets would close at 8.30 p.m. while wedding halls would shut doors by 10.00 p.m. respectively, which will “save us Rs 60 billion”. Announcing more measures, he said that manufacturing of incandescent bulbs would be stopped from February 1 while production of inefficient fans would be stopped from July. He said these measures would help to save another ₹22 billion. The government would also make the use of conical geysers mandatory within a year, which by using less gas would save ₹ 92 billion, and alternative use of street lights would save another ₹4 billion. Asif said that all government buildings and offices would also reduce use of energy under the plan and a policy to work from home would also be completed in up to 10 days. “No lights were on in the cabinet meeting today. The meeting was held in full sunlight,” he said, providing an example for the country to follow. Asif also said that the cabinet planned to conserve 30% of the electricity used by government departments, which would save ₹62 billion. In another step, Asif said that electric motorcycles would be introduced by the end of this year to help cut the import of fuel. “The plan to save energy is being enforced immediately and the cabinet will monitor it,” he said. Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman who accompanied the defence minister at the press conference said the plan would also help to tackle the climate change issue. “The world has been following this plan for a while and it is imperative for us to change our habits,” she said and asked businesses to cooperate. The measures to save energy come a day after the National Security Committee agreed that the revival of the economy is essential for national security. Pakistan’s economic situation is facing “severe headwinds” with inflation being forecast to stay high between 21-23% and the country’s fiscal deficit widening by more than 115% in the first four months (July-October) of the current fiscal year. Pakistan’s Ministry of Finance in its Monthly Economic Update and Outlook last week said that the economic growth is likely to remain below the budgeted target in FY23 due to devastation caused by floods. In Brief: The national executive of the BJP will meet in New Delhi for two days on January 16-17 and is tipped to endorse an extension in the term of its national president J.P. Nadda. The key organisational body of the party will deliberate on its strategy for the upcoming State assembly elections and take stock of its preparations of the next year Lok Sabha polls as well, party sources said on Tuesday. Nadda’s three-year term as the party president ends later this month. 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