High Court directs Jharkhand Govt not to suspend internet services for prior approval

Ranchi: The Jharkhand High Court on Saturday directed the State government not to suspend internet services for conducting examinations without prior permission from the court. This order will remain in effect until the writ petition is resolved.

The Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed on Friday by Rajendra Krishna, Chairman of the State Bar Council, challenging the government’s decision to suspend internet services during the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission’s (JSSC) Combined Graduate-Level Examination.

The court did not immediately stay the government’s order after the state explained that only mobile internet services, including mobile data and WiFi, were partially suspended, rather than a complete shutdown.

However, the court, comprising Justices Ananda Sen and Anubha Rawat Choudhary, was informed that the State had later revised its order, expanding the suspension to cover the entire internet, including broadband, FTTH, and leased lines, across Jharkhand. The new suspension period was set from 4:00 AM to 3:30 PM.

After reviewing the petitioner’s concerns, the court summoned Home Secretary Vandana Dadel, stating that the State’s subsequent action amounted to circumventing the court’s previous order issued on September 21.

“This is a fraud committed against the Court and a deceptive action. The interim order sought to balance the convenience between the public and the State’s concern for conducting exams. However, the State’s recent action has disturbed that balance,” the court remarked.

The court further observed that the State’s order to suspend the entire internet service after the September 21 ruling essentially nullified the judicial decision and may amount to criminal contempt.

In response, Home Secretary Vandana Dadel explained that based on intelligence inputs received around midnight on September 21-22, a high-level decision was made to suspend all internet services across Jharkhand. Service providers were informed via email at 1:30 AM, with the suspension enforced from 8:00 AM to 1:30 PM on September 22.

However, the court noted discrepancies between the submissions made by the Home Secretary, the service providers’ representatives, and the SMS notifications sent by the service providers.

The court has asked both the State government and service providers to submit their replies and scheduled the next hearing for November 14.