Bijoe Emmanuel case
Also called: Bijoe Emmanuel v. State of Kerala (1986) · Topic: Fundamental Rights and Constitutional Remedies · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Bijoe Emmanuel v. State of Kerala (1986) is a Supreme Court judgment on freedom of speech under Article 19(1)(a). The Court held that free speech also includes the right to stay silent. No law forced anyone to sing the national anthem, so punishing students for not singing it broke their fundamental rights.
Example
In Kerala, three Jehovah's Witness children were expelled from school. They stood respectfully when the national anthem was played but did not sing it, because of their faith. The Supreme Court ordered them taken back.
Don't confuse with
- Disrespect to the anthem: standing quietly is protected. Actively disturbing or insulting the anthem is not.
Related concepts
- Right to freedom
- Freedom of speech and expression
- Freedom of the press
- Reasonable restrictions
- Restrictions on freedom of speech
- Romesh Thappar case
- Kedar Nath Singh case
- Sedition
- Criminal defamation
- Shreya Singhal case