The contemporary debate between patriotic nationalism and the freedom of
expression has sparked off in the wake of JNU students’ union president arrest on
the charges of sedition post the organization of a cultural program. The incident
infuriated debate amongst the country’s highest intellectuals, parliamentarians,
journalists and many others across the globe over phrases such as “Nationalism”,
“Sedition” & “Freedom of expression” for such a vast and vibrant democracy. The
present case study was done to emphasize comparable cases in the past and to
help the public broaden their knowledge of the views of nationalism and the
laws governing ‘freedom of speech’ and ‘sedition’ according to the Indian
constitution.Through content analysis, various news articles were explored,with
opposite standpoints, on the incident with related facts.The study aims to underline
the difference between dissent against the ruling government and sedition that
spells the fact that the existing colonial-era law needs to be amended.The medium
that sustains the process of shaping and reshaping the consensus is largely
media in its varied forms, but a medium like media shape one’s thoughts, passions,
and aversions towards significant political and socio-cultural entities as important
as nation or nationalism is the debate here. It is answered through the case study
which also questions the role of a media reporting on the treatment of such
sensitive issues like Nationalism.