As the one-month suspension of social media in occupied Kashmir ends on May 26, Indian security agencies are advocating continuation of the ban claiming “it has yielded results on the ground”.
Top police sources said there was “a visible change on the ground as rumour mongering on the social media sites like WhatsApp and Facebook has come down significantly” since the ban imposed, The Hindu reported on Thursday.
However, the security agencies admit that stone pelting by Kashmiris at the encounter sites remain “a major challenge”. “The issue of stone pelting is still there but lifting the ban may aggravate the present situation,” a police officer was quoted as saying.
The social media ban, which has been largely circumvented by consumers by using virtual private network (VPN), according to the security agencies, has “still slowed down public mobilisation” on the ground.
The Modi-led government invoked the Indian Telegraph Act 1885 last month to direct all telecom service providers to block social media sites, including Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp along with video sharing site YouTube.
The move came in the wake of growing street protests in the Himalayan valley this year.
