A M A ZAMAN Vs. EMPEROR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS rule has been issued upon the Chief Presidency Magistrate of Calcutta to show cause why the conviction and sentence imposed upon the petitioner should not be set aside on the ground that the learned Magistrate ought to have held that the article in question is an attack upon the capitalists without reference to the Europeans and that the prosecution does not disclose an offence under Section 153-A, I.P.C. The charge in this case is that by the publication of an article entitled "Samrajya bader khara" or Sword of Imperialism" the accused attempted to promote feelings of enmity or hatred between different classes of His Majesty's subjects to wit, the Europeans and the Indians and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 153-A. We have perused the article which is the basis of the charge, namely, the article published by the petitioner in the paper called "Sarbahara" of which he is the Editor, entitled "Samrajya bader khara," and we find that while there are criticisms in this article of British Imperialism and the Rulers of India accusing them of exploiting and crushing the "workers" and the proletariat we think that the article cannot be said to be calculated to promote feelings of enmity or hatred between the Europeans as Europeans and the Indians as Indians to which enmity the charge refers. Nor is there any evidence that there was any intention on the part of the accused to promote that kind of enmity. We think therefore that on the charge as framed the petitioner ought not to have been convicted. We therefore set aside the conviction and sentence passed upon the petitioner under Section 153-A, and acquit him on the charge framed. The petitioner will be released unless detained on any other sentence.