# Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971

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​रजिस्ट्री संत दी० 221 REGISTERED No. D. 221
भारत $_{का}$ राजपत्र The Gazette of India
असाधारण EXTRAORDINARY भाग II — खण्ड 1 PART II — Section 1 प्राधिकार से प्रकाशित PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY
इस भाग में भिन्न पृष्ठ संख्या दी जाती है जिससे कि यह अलग संकलन के रूप में रखा जा सके। Separate paging is given to this Part in order that it may be filed as a separate compilation.
MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE (Legislative Department)
New Delhi, the 23rd December, 1971/Pausa 2, 1893 (Saka)
The following Act of Parliament received the assent of the President on the 23rd December, 1971, and is hereby published for general information:-
THE PREVENTION OF INSULTS TO NATIONAL HONOUR ACT, 1971
No. 69 OF 1971
[23rd December, 1971]
An Act to Prevent Insults to National Honour.
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Twenty-second Year of the Republic of India as follows:—
Short title and extent. 1. (1) This Act may be called the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971.
(2) It extends to the whole of India.
Insult to Indian National Flag and Constitution of India. 2. Whoever in any public place or in any other place within public view, burns, mutilates, defaces, defiles, disfigures, destroys, tramples upon or otherwise brings into contempt (whether by words, either spoken or written, or by acts) the Indian National Flag or the Constitution of India or any part thereof, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.
​Explanation 1.—Comments expressing disapprobation or criticism of the Constitution or of the Indian National Flag or of any measures of the Government with a view to obtain an amendment of the Constitution of India or an alteration of the Indian National Flag by lawful means do not constitute an offence under this section.
Explanation 2.—The expression "Indian National Flag" includes any picture, painting, drawing or photograph, or other visible representation of the Indian National Flag, or of any part or parts thereof, made of any substance or represented on any substance.
Explanation 3.—The expression "public place" means any place intended for use by, or accessible to, the public and includes any public conveyance.
Prevention of singing of Indian National Anthem, etc. 3. Whoever intentionally prevents the singing of the Indian National Anthem or causes disturbance to any assembly engaged in such singing shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.
N. D. P. NAMBOODIRIPAD, Joint Secy. to the Govt. of India.
This work is the work of Government of India. Section 52(1)(q) of the Indian Copyright Act, 1957 allows for the reproduction or publication of
* any matter which has been published in any Official Gazette except an Act of a Legislature;
* any Act of a Legislature subject to the condition that such Act is reproduced or published together with any commentary thereon or any other original matter;
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* any judgement or order of a court, Tribunal or other judicial authority, unless the reproduction or publication of such judgement or order is prohibited by the court, the Tribunal or other judicial authority, as the case may be.
The decision of the Supreme Court of India in "Eastern Book Company & Ors vs D.B. Modak & Anr" on 12 December, 2007 interpreted this section of the Act as making the material public domain.
This work is also in the public domain in the U.S. because it is an edict of a government, local or foreign. See § 313.6(C)(2) of the Compendium II: Copyright Office Practices. Such documents include "legislative enactments, judicial decisions, administrative rulings, public ordinances, or similar types of official legal materials" as well as "any translation prepared by a government employee acting within the course of his or her official duties."
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