Blogposts

We wrote to the District Magistrate, Howrah, to not use S.144 CrPC to suspend internet services

We wrote to the District Magistrate, Howrah District, West Bengal stating our concern about suspending internet services under Section 144 CrPC instead of following the procedure laid down in the Telecom Suspension Rules, 2017.

05 April, 2023

3 min read

Tanmay Singh

IT Amendment Rules

1 month of the GAC felt like a lifetime! We wrote to them seeking answers.

MeitY established three Grievance Appellate Committee(s) (“GAC”) on January 27, 2023 under Rule 3A of the notified IT Amendment Rules, 2022. We wrote to the Chairpersons of the three Committees, seeking clarification about the GAC’s establishment and functioning.

05 April, 2023

3 min read

Statement on recurring internet shutdowns in West Bengal and Bihar in response to communal violence

IFF is alarmed that the governments of West Bengal and Bihar are deploying internet shutdowns as a response to recent instances of communal clashes and violence, including by impermissible means such as under Section 144 of the CrPC.

04 April, 2023

3 min read

Gayatri Malhotra &

Tanmay Singh

Digital censorship in Punjab: internet shutdowns and account suspensions

Internet services in Punjab were shut down from March 18 till March 21 (in some districts till March 24). Reportedly, around 120 twitter accounts were suspended/ withheld. We wrote to the Punjab government and MeitY raising concerns about the internet shutdown and withheld accounts, respectively.

31 March, 2023

4 min read

workplace surveillance

6 months on, still no update from municipal corporations on the ongoing surveillance of sanitation workers

We wrote to the 4 municipal corporations that were directed by the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis to furnish a status report on the ongoing surveillance of sanitation workers.

30 March, 2023

3 min read

Anushka Jain

Statement on Digital Censorship in Punjab

The Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) is alarmed by the illegal censorship continuing in the State of Punjab.

28 March, 2023

2 min read

Tanmay Singh

TRAI

Climb off the mandatory activation TRAIn

In this post, we analyse the 40 comments submitted in response to TRAI's consultation paper titled ‘Consultation Paper on Introduction of Calling Name Presentation (CNAP) in Telecommunication Networks’, highlighting privacy concerns, especially in the absence of a data protection law.

28 March, 2023

6 min read

IT Rules, 2021

A Silver Lining? We wrote to the Rajya Sabha Committee ahead of its consideration of the IT Rules, 2021

The Rajya Sabha Committee on Subordinate Legislation is meeting on March 27, 2023, to consider the IT Rules, 2021 and its subsequent amendments. We wrote to them expressing our gratitude for their consideration of the Rules, while citing our concerns as well as the impact on online free speech.

27 March, 2023

5 min read