Violence, Passion, and the Law: A Brief History of Section 295A and Its Antecedents
The lawsuit filed against Wendy Doniger’s The Hindus: An Alternative History under section 295A of the Indian Penal Code prompted a controversy about free speech. Section 295A punishes speech that offends the religious feelings of a group of Indian citizens. According to one view, rigorous applicati...
| Subtitles: | Roundtable on outrage, scholarship, and the law in India |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Oxford University Press
[2016]
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| In: |
Journal of the American Academy of Religion
Year: 2016, Volume: 84, Issue: 2, Pages: 337-351 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Doniger, Wendy 1940-, The Hindus
/ India, Strafgesetzbuch (1860). 295A
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| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | The lawsuit filed against Wendy Doniger’s The Hindus: An Alternative History under section 295A of the Indian Penal Code prompted a controversy about free speech. Section 295A punishes speech that offends the religious feelings of a group of Indian citizens. According to one view, rigorous application of laws like 295A is justified, because peaceful coexistence in a plural society like India depends on great restraint in discussing religion. The history of section 295A and its antecedents shows that contrary to expectations, such laws have not functioned to prevent violence. Instead, they have encouraged violent display, feeding the contemporary politics of religious sentiment. |
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| ISSN: | 1477-4585 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: American Academy of Religion, Journal of the American Academy of Religion
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1093/jaarel/lfw027 |