DELHI DERAILS

City comes to a grinding halt amidst massive curbs imposed to control protests against Citizenship Act

- Chayyanika Nigam & Ajay Kumar

NORMAL life was thrown out of gear in the National Capital as the agitation against the citizenship law peaked and protesters defied prohibitory orders imposed under Section 144 of the CrPC to come out in large numbers on the streets.

INTERNET SNAPPED

For the first time, mobile Internet, voice and messaging services were suspended for about four hours in several parts of the National Capital, only to be resumed on Thursday afternoon as the city saw anti-citizenship law protests. A notice was sent to the nodal officers of service providers by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police a day before, in the wake of protest calls.

According to a Delhi Police directive, voice, SMS and mobile Internet services were asked to be shut in Walled City areas of north and central districts, Mandi House, Seelampur, Jaffarbad, Mustafabad, Jamia Nagar, Shaeen Bagh and Bawana between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. “Modi government is dictating provocative policies. It is shutting down the Internet. What is the meaning of democracy?” asked Syed Shiraz, a student of Jamia Millia Islamia, who came to Jantar Mantar for protest.

Senior officials, requesting anonymity, claim that they might have to suspend the services in future if needed. “As seen in the Jamia incident, we have witnessed several rumours doing the rounds. We had concrete information that outsiders and miscreants will use these rumours again. Therefore, we have suspended Internet services at a few places in Delhi,” MS Randhawa, Delhi Police spokesperson, said. The move was criticised. “It is completely unconstitutional exercise of power by the Delhi Police,” said Apar Gupta, executive director of Internet Freedom Foundation.

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