Indian voices cannot be silenced on the Net.

India may be the world's largest democracy but it also has the dubious distinction of being the biggest perpetrator of internet shutdowns in the world at the first sign of dissent and disorder. Last week, the Indian Supreme Court, while ordering the central government to review restrictions it had imposed in the newly created union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, said cutting off the internet was against the constitution and that the decision trampled upon fundamental rights which included freedom of expression. The issue in focus here is the online communication network in the territory which the government had snapped ostensibly to maintain public order. It was a draconian measure to quell social unrest even before it had begun and to choke digital terrorist activity in the territory. I cannot say the pre-emptive strike against the Net made the problem go away after Jammu and Kashmir's special status was stripped following the abrogation of Article 370 last August, but it has kept the social and political pot boiling for five months now. Previously, governments found it convenient to shoot the messenger if the message was unpalatable.

The messenger was the fall guy, now the medium itself has been silenced to ensure the message cannot get out and upset the status quo which is akin to throwing the baby out of the bathwater. It's not just information that has been blocked but also the transactional ability of the people as most businesses are going digital. New Delhi has flaunted its digital India credentials assiduously but extreme measures like blocking the internet have sullied its image and begs the question: what or who is the government afraid of? Technology, the spread of information, or the people themselves? Impending terror attacks or unrest is but an excuse that holds no water. Data reveals that the Narendra Modi government has switched off digital connectivity at the smallest sign of trouble the most in the last decade. Since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in 2014, Net connections have been deliberately snapped on an industrial scale in different states for various reasons a whopping 370 times. A war against information on the online medium is being waged, though many die-hard supporters known as bhakts will raise decibel levels online and off it through trolls and deny this vociferously - the cult of oneness and order will not suffer a different point of view.

Interestingly, the figure ties in with Article 370, a...