16 Jul 2022: UPSC Exam Comprehensive News Analysis

E. Editorials

Category: POLITY
Syllabus: Separation of powers between various organs, Structure, organization and functioning of Executive and Judiciary

Mains: Analysis on how ‘Hate speech’ causes ‘structural violence’ in addition to ‘overt violence’

Context: This article talks about the growing network of online hate speech and trolling against established institutions like Judiciary and Journalism.

What Constitutes Hate Speech and Trolling?

• Hate speech basically is any kind of speech, behaviour or writing which is intended to attack or harm (particularly, discrimination, hostility or violence) based upon someone’s religion, ethnicity, race, colour, gender or other factors.
• Hate speech relies on tensions, which it strives to reproduce and amplify.
• A troll is Internet slang for a person who intentionally tries to provoke conflict, hostility, or arguments in an online social community. 
• Trolls often use inflammatory messages to provoke emotional responses out of people, disrupting otherwise civil discussions.
• Trolling can occur anywhere that has an open area where people can freely post their thoughts and opinions.

‘Hate speech’ is systemic, cumulative and a threat to Democracy:

• The recent fierce attack on a judge of the Supreme Court of India by the IT cell of a prominent national political party against his comment on Nupur Sharma, for her remarks on the Prophet which faced international backlash, has given the perception that there are a substantial number of people opposed to the scathing judicial criticism.
  • These trollings of the judge raise important questions regarding the source of financial and ideological encouragement provided for the network of people engaged in hate speech.
• Political parties have inducted volunteers and paid workers and have ‘bots created by the central IT Cell which tweets out identical messages simultaneously’ so that they ‘look like a real user’. 
  • These accounts are used to influence public opinion in favour or against public policies and issues.
• The recent trend of elections worldwide shows the significant impact of social media in determining the fate of elections.
  • Similar to the global trend, the Indian elections have also been affected by social media and it has been responsible for swaying people’s opinions one way or the other.
  • The unethical ways of using social media against journalists, political opponents of the Government or the judiciary to achieve ambitious political goals as against rational and constructive speeches to gain the favour of the public.
  • They have led to an increased amount of fake content and the flow of misinformation and disinformation.

Provisions on Hate Speech in the Indian Constitution:

• India prohibits hate speech through various sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure, and other laws which put limitations on the freedom of expression.
•  Constitutionally, Article 19 gives all citizens the right to freedom of speech and expression but the said freedom of expression is subject to “reasonable restrictions”.
  • There are reasonable restrictions to free speech when it looks likely to spiral into violence, what a 1989 Supreme Court judgment called a “spark in a powder keg” situation.
• Sections 153A, 153B, 295A, 298, 505 of the Indian Penal Code 1860 deal with speech or words that could create mischief, outrage religious beliefs or cause imputations to national integration.
• The Law Commission has proposed that separate offenses be added to the IPC to criminalize hate speech quite specifically instead of being subsumed in the existing sections concerning inflammatory acts and speeches. 
  • It has proposed that two new sections, Section 153C and Section 505A, be added.

Extent of Judicial Interference on Hate Speech:

1. The duty to curb hate speech and ensure justice largely falls on the shoulders of the higher judiciary. However, the reaction of the courts to meet this challenge has been mixed. 
2. On the spread of hate speech, the Apex Court pointed out that the main cause of the problem is not the lack of laws but rather a lack of their effective execution.
   • Therefore, the executive, as well as civil society, has to perform its role in enforcing the already existing legal regime.
3. Chief Justice of India NV Ramana stressed that it is imperative to start a discourse as to how social media trends can affect institutions.
4. The Indian Constitution seeks to prevent the delivery of hate speech under the garb of free speech and expression. It prohibits expressions that can be insulting to others under the provision of reasonable restrictions.
5. The fundamental duty under Article 51A(h) insists that citizens must develop scientific temper, humanism, and the spirit of inquiry and reform. 
6. Several factors are to be considered when restricting speeches like the number of strong opinions, offensive to certain communities, and the effect on the values of dignity, liberty, and equality.
7. The Supreme Court in ‘AM Mathur vs Pramod Kumar Gupta, 1990’ opined that Judges should not use strong and carping language while criticizing the conduct of parties or their witnesses. They must act with sobriety, moderation and restraint.

Know more about Hate Speech.

Conclusion:

Social media can become disintegrative with unnecessary impressions that endanger a wholesome and correct understanding of judgements. India, as the world’s largest democracy, cannot afford to have instances of judicial overreach, especially on the freedom of speech. If not safeguarded properly, its curtailment could lead to the destruction of democracy.

Therefore there must be a balance between freedom of speech and expression. It is in the interest of all stakeholders that judges’ conduct be always above board and balanced. Unspoken, ethical conduct with sufficient indicators that define social etiquette will ensure dignity for judges and judgments 

Nut Graf: As observed by the Kerala High Court recently, “The constitutional Courts in this country have been zealous to protect the freedom of speech and expression but this cannot be a license for persons armed with half-baked facts with little or no knowledge of how the judiciary functions and little or no knowledge of the fundamental legal principles that govern it, abuse the justice delivery system.”

F. Prelims Facts

1. Monkeypox disease

Syllabus: GS-2; Health

Prelims: Monkeypox disease

Context:

Kerala reports India’s first monkeypox case.

Monkeypox disease

• Monkeypox is a viral zoonotic disease (a disease caused by a pathogen that has spread from an animal).
• Monkeypox disease is associated with symptoms that were similar to those seen in smallpox patients but it is clinically less severe.
• Various animal species have been identified as hosts of the monkeypox virus such as rope squirrels, tree squirrels, Gambian pouched rats, dormice, non-human primates and other species. 
• Monkeypox was first identified in humans in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and had primarily occurred in central and west African countries.

Image Source: The Hindu

Read more about Monkeypox disease and virus.

G. Tidbits

1. Assam, Arunachal CMs agree to border realignment based on 1960 papers

• Assam and Arunachal Pradesh Chief Ministers signed the Namsai Declaration for minimising the inter-State boundary dispute involving 123 villages.
  • The boundary line shown on 29 topo-sheets by a high-powered committee in 1960 will be taken as the basis for the realignment of the Arunachal Pradesh-Assam boundary towards resolving decades of dispute.
  • According to the declaration, all border issues between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh will be confined to those raised before the local commission in 2007.
• Arunachal Pradesh attained Statehood in February 1987 which used to be the North East Frontier Tract, administered by the Governor of Assam as an agent of the President of India.
  • It was renamed North East Frontier Agency and brought under the Central government’s control in 1954.
• The two leaders of the states have agreed that 33 border villages should remain in Arunachal Pradesh and three in Assam and the final decision will be based on the recommendations of the regional committees.
• These committees will make recommendations to the State governments by taking into account the historical perspective, administrative convenience, contiguity and people’s will, to delineate the inter-State boundary.

2. Iran, Belarus to be newest SCO members: Centre

• Iran and Belarus are likely to be the two newest additions to the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) grouping which had China, Russia and four Central Asian states namely Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan as founding members. 
  • India and Pakistan joined the grouping in 2017.
• The significance of this round of expansion is that it shows that SCO has been extending its international influence and there is wide acceptance of the principles of the SCO.
• Experts point out that China and Russia after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are trying to frame the grouping as a counter to the West-dominated NATO.
• India is expected to host the SCO summit in 2023, and Varanasi has been selected as the SCO region’s first “Tourism and Cultural Capital”.

H. UPSC Prelims Practice Questions

Q1. Which of the following is the most grown kharif pulse in India? (Level – Difficult)

1. Arhar
2. Moong
3. Urad
4. Moth

CHECK ANSWERS:-

Answer: a

Q2. Consider the following statements with regards to CAATSA (Countering America’s 
Adversaries through Sanctions Act): (Level – Easy)

1. It is a US federal law enacted in 2017.
2. The Act empowers the US President to impose at least five of the 12 listed sanctions on persons engaged in a “significant transaction” with Russian defence and intelligence sectors.
3. The US Senate was given the authority in 2018 to waive CAATSA sanctions on a case-by-case basis.

Choose the correct code:

1. 1 & 2 only
2. 2 & 3 only
3. 1 & 3 only
4. All of the above

CHECK ANSWERS:-

Answer: a

• Statement 1 is correct, The Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) is a United States Federal Law that was passed on 27 July 2017.
• Statement 2 is correct, CAATSA empowers the US President to impose at least five of the 12 listed sanctions on persons engaged in a “significant transaction” with Russian defence and intelligence sectors.
• Statement 3 is not correct, The US President was given the authority in 2018 to waive CAATSA sanctions on a case-by-case basis.

Q3. Consider the following statements with regards to Shanghai Cooperation Organization:
(Level – Medium)

1. China, Russia and four Central Asian states – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan — were the founding members of the SCO.
2. The group will soon induct Iran and Belarus as members as well.
3. Varanasi has been selected as the SCO region’s first “Tourism and Cultural Capital”.

Choose the correct code:

1. 1 & 2 only
2. 2 & 3 only
3. 1 & 3 only
4.  All of the above

CHECK ANSWERS:-

Answer: b

• Statement 1 is not correct, China, Russia and four Central Asian states – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan — were the founding members of the SCO.
  • India and Pakistan joined the grouping in 2017.
• Statement 2 is correct, Iran and Belarus are likely to be the two newest additions to the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) 
• Statement 3 is correct, Varanasi has been selected as the SCO region’s first “Tourism and Cultural Capital”.

Q4. As per the UN, three million children in India missed DTP dose in 2020 because of
 pandemic. In this context, what is DTP? (Level – Medium)

1. diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis
2. diphtheria, typhoid and pertussis
3. diphtheria, tetanus and polio
4. diphtheria, typhoid and polio

CHECK ANSWERS:-

Answer: a

• DTP stands for diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis.
• Diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis are serious bacterial diseases that can be prevented in adults and children with DTP Vaccines.

Q5. With reference to India, Didwana, Kuchaman, Sargol and Khatu are the names of 
(Level – Difficult) PYQ (2021)

1. Glaciers
2. Mangrove areas
3. Ramsar sites
4. Saline lakes

CHECK ANSWERS:-

Answer: d

• Didwana, Kuchaman, Sargol and Khatu are saline lakes of Rajasthan.
• Didwana, Kuchaman, the Sargol and the Khatu lakes are playas.
  • Playas are small lakes with flat floors and undrained basins in which water collects after rains and evaporates quickly.

I. UPSC Mains Practice Questions

1. Campaigns through social media are adversely impacting matters relating to law and Constitution. Elaborate. (GS-2, Polity)
2. Discuss the possible reasons for reduction in the fish catches in the Indian coasts and suggest corrective measures. (GS-3, Economy)

Read the previous CNA here.

CNA 16 July 2022:- Download PDF Here