The Law, Humanities and Social Science Collective at Maharashtra National Law University Mumbai is inviting submissions for its Blog, on the theme of ‘Freedom of Speech: The Conundrum of Truth’. The deadline for submission is 5th April, 2025.
About MNLU Mumbai
Maharashtra National Law University Mumbai, established under the Maharashtra National Law University Act 2014 on 20th March 2014, is one of the premier National Law Universities in India with a strong interdisciplinary focus on law and allied areas.
About the Blog and Call for Submissions
The Law Humanities and Social Sciences Collective’s blog, housed at MNLU Mumbai, promotes, publishes, and platforms research that works at the intersection of law and other disciplines from a Global South perspective. In this process, the Collective supports its contributors in fine-tuning their writing, hone their research skills, and help collate resources.
Uniquely, the Collective not only accept full-fledged articles for the blog, but also preliminary ideas. If an author wishes, he/she can email a prospective idea, and the editorial team shall assess its potential and further guide the author to develop it.
Theme – Freedom of Speech: The Conundrum of Truth
Few ideals are as foundational to democratic societies as the right to free speech. Enshrined in constitutions and human rights charters, freedom of speech is often hailed as the lifeblood of democracy, an indispensable tool for truth-seeking, and a bulwark against authoritarianism. Yet, in an era increasingly defined by misinformation, ideological echo chambers, and digital virality, the very notion of free speech is fraught with contradictions. The right to express oneself is both celebrated and contested, with its limits, responsibilities, and vulnerabilities under greater scrutiny than ever before.
The advent of social media has accelerated the tension between free speech and truth. While the internet has democratized access to information, it has also created an environment where disinformation and propaganda flourish. Fact and fiction are often indistinguishable, with truth itself becoming a battleground of competing narratives. Governments, corporations, and individuals’ alike struggle to navigate this landscape, raising pressing questions: Should there be constraints on speech that is demonstrably false or harmful? If so, who decides? And what are the risks of such interventions becoming tools of censorship?
This tension is not new. Throughout history, societies have wrestled with the paradox of free speech—the idea that the very freedom that enables truth to emerge can also be weaponized to spread falsehoods and incite harm. Philosophers from John Stuart Mill to Hannah Arendt have debated the role of free speech in fostering rational discourse and the dangers posed by its misuse. Contemporary debates over hate speech, political propaganda, and the role of artificial intelligence in content moderation reflect enduring anxieties over speech’s dual capacity to enlighten and deceive.
The challenge of safeguarding both free speech and truth is particularly acute in politically charged environments. Authoritarian regimes exploit disinformation while suppressing dissent, weaponizing speech to consolidate power. In liberal democracies, legislative efforts to curb misinformation risk overreach, threatening to stifle legitimate discourse. Meanwhile, the role of private platforms in moderating speech raises fundamental concerns about accountability and the privatization of public debate.
Amid these complexities, the law remains both an enabler and a constraint. Legal frameworks governing free speech vary widely, reflecting different historical and cultural approaches to balancing rights and responsibilities. The jurisprudence on free speech—from landmark decisions on press freedom to evolving laws on online speech—reveals the persistent struggle to reconcile openness with order, and truth with plurality.
Given this background, we invite papers that engage with the following themes, for example:
-
Free Speech and the Politics of Truth in the Digital Age
-
Disinformation, Misinformation, and the Law
-
Censorship, Platform Regulation, and the Role of Private Corporations
-
Free Speech in Authoritarian and Democratic Contexts
-
The Philosophy of Free Speech: Limits, Ethics, and Responsibilities
-
Hate Speech, Incitement, and the Law
We welcome interdisciplinary perspectives that examine the evolving conundrum of free speech and truth through legal, philosophical, historical, and technological lenses.
Mode of Submission
All submissions shall be made by filling out this Google Form.
Deadline
Authors are required to submit their work by 5th April 2025.
General Guidelines
The Editorial Board of the MNLUM’s Law, Humanities, and Social Sciences Blog invites submissions in keeping with the following guidelines:
-
Submissions shall be accepted from students, legal professionals, teachers, researchers, policy-makers, senior academicians, and any member of the legal and humanities fraternity.
-
Co-authorship of up to 2 authors is allowed.
-
The submission should be original, exclusive, and unpublished, and should not be under review by any similar platform. Non-adherence to this rule shall result in a rejection of the submission, irrespective of its quality.
-
Cross-publication will be allowed subject to prior permission from the original platform of publication.
-
Any content that is related to the intersection of law with humanities and social sciences, or raises awareness about the same, whether in theory or in practice, is eligible for submission to the Blog.
-
Submissions may be in the form of articles, short notes, book reviews, responses to an existing post on the Blog, or in any other form or manner that the Editorial Board deems appropriate.
-
The Board retains absolute discretion in relation to both acceptance and rejection of a submission
-
Upon acceptance of the submission by the Board, the copyright over the manuscript is vested with the Blog.
-
The submission should reflect the original and unpublished work of the author(s). The Blog however permits a maximum similarity index of 15% and in no case shall a submission shall exceed this limit.
-
Further information, requests, or queries regarding submissions may be obtained by sending an e-mail to lhssblog@mnlumumbai.edu.in
Content and Formatting Guidelines
-
The word limit for every submission must ideally be limited to 1500-2000 words, except in cases where the Editorial Board deems otherwise. Longer pieces may be published in installments in consultation with the contributors.
-
The title of the post must be formatted to Times New Roman, Size 14, 1.5 Line Spacing, in All Caps and in Bold.
-
The main body of the submission must be formatted to Times New Roman, Size 12 and with 1.5 Line Spacing and single line space between paragraphs.
-
All references must be in the form of hyperlinks in the body of the submissions. In case a hyperlink is not available for a reference, Endnotes in Times New Roman, Size 10 with 1 Line Spacing may be used, and such Endnotes must follow either the Bluebook 20th Edition or APA Citation Style.
-
The submission must be turned in as a Word document (.doc/.docx). The name of the document must be the same as the title of the submission.
-
The submission document should not contain the name or institutional affiliation of the author, or any information that may disclose the identity of the author and hamper the review process.
Timeline for Review
The Editorial Board shall try to respond to the authors with an acceptance/rejection/acceptance subject to the modification within 15 days from the date of receipt of submission.
Submission of Ideas
-
The Blog accepts submissions in the form of tentative ideas/writing topics as well.
-
Author(s) may email a brief outline of their ideas to lhssblog@mnlumumbai.edu.in. A few indicative readings and sources that inspired the idea may also be attached. Please note that the outline of the idea needs to be formatted as a formal abstract.
-
If the editors are of the opinion that the idea has publication potential, they shall get back to you regarding the prospect of developing it further along with indicative suggestions and pointers.
-
Following this, the author(s) must submit a full-fledged article conforming with the Guidelines specified above.
-
The editors shall then subject the article to the review process of a full article and shall revert back to the authors within 15 days along with further comments/changes if any.
Do send in your 1500-2000 word entries to get published. You will find the detailed submission guidelines here. For any query, feel free to write at lhssblog@mnlumumbai.edu.in
