Guest Column : Is this Freedom of Expression?
May 23, 2025
  • Read Ecopy
  • Circulation
  • Advertise
  • Careers
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
Organiser
  • ‌
  • Bharat
    • Assam
    • Bihar
    • Chhattisgarh
    • Jharkhand
    • Maharashtra
    • View All States
  • World
    • Asia
    • Europe
    • North America
    • South America
    • Africa
    • Australia
    • Global Commons
  • Editorial
  • International
  • Opinion
  • Op Sindoor
  • More
    • Analysis
    • Sports
    • Defence
    • RSS in News
    • Politics
    • Business
    • Economy
    • Culture
    • Special Report
    • Sci & Tech
    • Entertainment
    • G20
    • Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav
    • Vocal4Local
    • Web Stories
    • Education
    • Employment
    • Books
    • Interviews
    • Travel
    • Law
    • Health
    • Obituary
    • Podcast
MAGAZINE
  • ‌
  • Bharat
    • Assam
    • Bihar
    • Chhattisgarh
    • Jharkhand
    • Maharashtra
    • View All States
  • World
    • Asia
    • Europe
    • North America
    • South America
    • Africa
    • Australia
    • Global Commons
  • Editorial
  • International
  • Opinion
  • Op Sindoor
  • More
    • Analysis
    • Sports
    • Defence
    • RSS in News
    • Politics
    • Business
    • Economy
    • Culture
    • Special Report
    • Sci & Tech
    • Entertainment
    • G20
    • Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav
    • Vocal4Local
    • Web Stories
    • Education
    • Employment
    • Books
    • Interviews
    • Travel
    • Law
    • Health
    • Obituary
    • Podcast
Organiser
  • Home
  • Bharat
  • World
  • Operation Sindoor
  • Editorial
  • Analysis
  • Opinion
  • Culture
  • Defence
  • International Edition
  • RSS in News
  • Magazine
  • Read Ecopy
Organiser Weekly is Hiring!
Home Bharat

Guest Column : Is this Freedom of Expression?

A lot is being said and written about Freedom of Speech and Expression these days. What does the word ?freedom? mean in our country India? We have never understood the real concept of ?freedom?.

by Archive Manager
Apr 18, 2016, 12:09 pm IST
in Bharat
FacebookTwitterWhatsAppTelegramEmail

Anti-national and anti-social elements have misused our constitutional provisions to propagate disintegrating thoughts under the garb of freedom of speech

Sanjay Raut

A lot is being said and written about Freedom of Speech and Expression these days. What does the word ‘freedom’ mean in our country India? We have never understood the real concept of ‘freedom’. Because of this, there is an unreasonable confusion amongst the generations with regard to what should be the freedom and what shouldn’t be. I feel it is complete chaos as far as freedom in our country relates to. We are a bunch of people struggling to be free from God knows what. We lack clarity, we lack a real understanding of life; we lack freedom from fixed ideas and unrealistic beliefs.
Voltaire while making a statement regarding freedom of expression, says, “What you say I don”t like at all, but you have all the right to say what you want to say. If somebody deprives you of this right, I will fight for you!” We don”t need to agree to everything that people say, people can have different views and still be together. The ones who do not second our ideas need not be our enemies. Well, that”s the most difficult thing to understand.
Renowned American judge Homes while defining the Freedom of Expression says that Freedom of Expression does not mean allowing expression to people who agree with our thoughts, but to allow people to express whom we hate. People of all thought processes and people of all political inclinations should be given a chance to express their thoughts, that’s democracy. But our country faces an overdose of this kind of freedom. Even the anti-social elements get a platform to express their anti-national thoughts, which can be dangerous for the country. This will propagate wrong message to the youth and will not only spoil the environment of the nation but also disturb the social fabric of the country.
What happened at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in the heart of national capital New Delhi is a complete mockery of democracy. “Afzal Guru Zindabad and we will cut India into pieces” were the slogans, which were not at all anywhere close to expression. It can only be associated to terrorism. People like Afzal Guru tried to weaken, break and attack the freedom and completeness of the nation. The highest court of the country prosecuted them with the death penalties.
The ones who do not believe in this fact have no right to speak on freedom of speech. The ones who have no contribution towards the nation are the only ones who support such kind of anti-national expressions under the garb of Freedom of Expression.
A certain category of people have always spoken the anti-national words and called them freedom; they have specifically nurtured terrorism in the disguise of expressing thoughts. India has been tolerant to these people.
On one side our army officers are sacrificing their lives for the country and at the same time we are tolerating the hate probation of breaking Kashmir from India. Isn’t it an insult of those protecting our borders all the time? This is possible only in India. No other country will tolerate this.
A man like Owaisi can say “I will not say Bharat Mata ki Jai, even if you slit my throat” and can continue to bear a constitutional position in the Government of the country. This is a bad luck of the country and Freedom of Expression that we are tolerating nonsense.
Anything in excess becomes hazardous. Same is the case with Freedom of Expression. In our country, nobody is taking a stand on Uniform Code of Conduct and Section 370, but all rights are given to those anti-national people to spread violence and venom in the lives of our countrymen.
The country needs tough action to curb such elements and also support the nationalists whether they are fighting in the JNU or the  National Institute of Technology (NIT) Srinagar. Nobody can be allowed to hit the roots of the nation in the name of Freedom of Expression. The citizens need to be alert and safeguard the integration of our country by displaying unity in diversity. Nation comes first, everything else later.
(The writer is Rajya Sabha MP  from Shiv Sena and also executive editor of Saamana, the mouthpiece of Shiv Sena)

ShareTweetSendShareSend
Subscribe Organiser YouTube Channel
Previous News

Report : Balagokulam Spreads its Wings

Next News

Guest Column : Freedom of Expression in our DNA

Related News

Murshidabad Violence: State failure, premeditated and organised crime…, indicts the judicial probe

Union Home Minister Amit Shah

PM Modi’s strong political will, accurate intel info, Armed forces lethality: Amit Shah hails Operation Sindoor

PM Modi describes North-East as Ashtalakshmi, crown jewel of culture and commerce

India avenged Pahalgam Terrorist attack by launching Operation Sindoor

One Month Post-Pahalgam Terrorist Attack: Military might of India and diplomatic offensive against Pakistan

Kerala: CM Vijayan betraying SC/ST communities by underutilising and diverting funds specifically allocated to them

Tamil Nadu: DMK leader’s sexual abuse case – police inactive until NCW steps in; victim under pressure

Load More

Comments

The comments posted here/below/in the given space are not on behalf of Organiser. The person posting the comment will be in sole ownership of its responsibility. According to the central government's IT rules, obscene or offensive statement made against a person, religion, community or nation is a punishable offense, and legal action would be taken against people who indulge in such activities.

Latest News

Murshidabad Violence: State failure, premeditated and organised crime…, indicts the judicial probe

Union Home Minister Amit Shah

PM Modi’s strong political will, accurate intel info, Armed forces lethality: Amit Shah hails Operation Sindoor

PM Modi describes North-East as Ashtalakshmi, crown jewel of culture and commerce

India avenged Pahalgam Terrorist attack by launching Operation Sindoor

One Month Post-Pahalgam Terrorist Attack: Military might of India and diplomatic offensive against Pakistan

Kerala: CM Vijayan betraying SC/ST communities by underutilising and diverting funds specifically allocated to them

Tamil Nadu: DMK leader’s sexual abuse case – police inactive until NCW steps in; victim under pressure

Andhra Pradesh: Namaz Offered by Muslim at Sacred Tirumala Temple Premises; Police Investigating to trace him

Andhra Pradesh: Namaz offered by Muslim at sacred Tirumala temple premises; police investigating to trace him

UP ATS arrests Pakistan spy Tufail Alam

UP ATS arrests Pakistan spy Tufail Alam for sharing sensitive data & spreading fundamentalism to radicalise Muslims

Shaurya Yatra

‘Shaurya Yatra’ organised in Bhubaneswar by Mahila Samanvaya Odisha (Purv) to honour Operation Sindoor

Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry threatened India with dire consequences over the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty

‘We’ll choke you if…’: Was it Pakistan Army’s DG ISPR Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry or terrorist Hafiz Saeed?

  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Cookie Policy
  • Refund and Cancellation
  • Delivery and Shipping

© Bharat Prakashan (Delhi) Limited.
Tech-enabled by Ananthapuri Technologies

  • Home
  • Search Organiser
  • Bharat
    • Assam
    • Bihar
    • Chhattisgarh
    • Jharkhand
    • Maharashtra
    • View All States
  • World
    • Asia
    • Africa
    • North America
    • South America
    • Europe
    • Australia
    • Global Commons
  • Editorial
  • Operation Sindoor
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Defence
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Business
  • RSS in News
  • Entertainment
  • More ..
    • Sci & Tech
    • Vocal4Local
    • Special Report
    • Education
    • Employment
    • Books
    • Interviews
    • Travel
    • Health
    • Politics
    • Law
    • Economy
    • Obituary
    • Podcast
  • Subscribe Magazine
  • Read Ecopy
  • Advertise
  • Circulation
  • Careers
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Policies & Terms
    • Privacy Policy
    • Cookie Policy
    • Refund and Cancellation
    • Terms of Use

© Bharat Prakashan (Delhi) Limited.
Tech-enabled by Ananthapuri Technologies