AhlulBayt News Agency: Legal experts and free speech advocates have condemned the Jammu and Kashmir administration’s recent move to ban the use of VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) and arbitrarily detain those found violating the order. They have called this a direct attack on privacy and the right to information.
The crackdown on VPN usage came to light when residents in the Chenab Valley region of Jammu and Kashmir were reportedly detained under “technical surveillance” for using VPN services.
The issue gained attention after a May 2 order issued by Kashmir's Deputy Commissioner, Harvinder Singh, banned the use of VPNs across the region. Citing threats to "public order, peace, and national security," the order imposed a two-month ban on VPN usage throughout the Union Territory.
According to press reports, on May 16, the Doda district police stated that "several individuals" had been detained for using VPNs to bypass internet restrictions. The police statement said those detained were being questioned, and further action would be taken in accordance with the relevant legal provisions. The statement added that the use of VPNs was prohibited under the order and that violators would face strict legal consequences.
Senior Supreme Court lawyer Nitya Ramakrishnan told The Wire that Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) gives the executive “broad and sweeping powers,” calling the law itself unconstitutional.
Civil rights activist and free speech advocate Geeta Shishu remarked that Section 163 is a preventive provision meant to be used only in "extreme emergencies." She emphasized that access to the internet is a fundamental right under the Indian Constitution, and any restriction on information access harms citizens' right to know.
It is worth noting that following the Pahalgam terror attack and the subsequent Operation Sindoor, the central government earlier this month adopted a filtering policy, blocking several websites and social media accounts and pages. These platforms were accused of publishing "incendiary and communally sensitive content, false and misleading statements, and disinformation" against India, its army, and its security agencies.
As part of this operation, at least 16 Pakistan-based YouTube channels, including one operated by Pakistan’s leading English daily Dawn, were blocked. In India, 8,000 X (formerly Twitter) accounts were also restricted, many of which still remain inaccessible to users.
Your Comment