‘There is no legal vacuum to deal with this crime’ – Supreme Court’s view on hate speech

this Supreme Court Wednesday said existing legal provisions were sufficient to address hate speech crimes but declined to issue further instructions on the matter as it fell within the jurisdiction of the legislature.“The provision of punishment falls entirely within the ambit of legislation. The constitutional system based on the principle of separation of powers does not allow the judiciary to create new offences,” the Supreme Court said, adding that there was no legislative vacuum to warrant seeking intervention.“While constitutional courts can interpret laws, they cannot legislate or compel legislation,” the Supreme Court said.The court, however, urged the Center to examine the need for new legislation to address hate speech in light of the changing social environment.As quoted by Live Law, a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta delivered the verdict on a batch of petitions seeking direction and guidelines to address the issue of hate speech.