The Press Club of India (PCI), the Indian Women Press Corps and the Editors Guild have strongly condemned the FIR filed by the Assam Police’s Crime Branch against Senior Journalist Siddharth Varadarajan and Karan Thapar of The Wire, which invoked sedition charges under Section 152 of the BNS.
The Guwahati Police Crime Branch has summoned The Wire journalists Siddharth Varadarajan and Karan Thapar for questioning under sedition charges (Section 152 of BNS), with a directive to appear on August 22. This is the second FIR against them in two months, raising alarm bells over targeted legal action against media figures.
The Supreme Court issued interim protection to The Wire’s journalists from coercive measures in the Morigaon case, and the Assam Police issued fresh summons for a new FIR. “It is noteworthy that the summons were issued on August 12, 2025, despite the Supreme Court bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi granted protection to Varadarajan and other journalists at The Wire, under Section 152 and other provisions of BNS,” a statement by The Press Club of India and the Women Press Corps said.
The PCI and IWPC described the Assam Police’s action as Vindictive, condemning the repeated invocation of Section 152 against the media. They described Section 152 as a repackaged form of the colonial era sedition law and demanded Immediate withdrawal of FIRs and Repeal of Section 152, which they called draconian and a threat to press freedom under Article 19(1)(a).
The Editors Guild of India (EGI) labelled the FIRs as part of a growing trend of targeting journalists via penal provisions. EGI noted the overlapping of Sections 152 (Sovereignty), 196 (Enmity between groups), 197 (False Propaganda), 353 (Public Mischief), 45 (Abetment), and 61 (Criminal Conspiracy) as excessive and suppressive. EGI emphasised that the legal process itself has become a penal tool against Independent Journalism.
The Indian Journalism Union (IJU) welcomed the SC decision affirming journalistic work. IJU called it a victory for democracy, urging law enforcement to respect press freedom, and reinforcing the judiciary’s protective role.
