Manipur HC panel to check if internet can be restored by blocking VPNs, social media

The Manipur High Court has constituted a 12-member expert committee to look into the possibility of blocking VPN servers so that the State’s internet access can be restored safely while still maintaining restrictions on social media websites.

The Manipur High Court has constituted a 12-member expert committee to look into the possibility of blocking VPN servers so that the State’s internet access can be restored safely while still maintaining restrictions on social media websites.

A Division Bench of Justices Ahanthem Bimol Singh and A. Guneshwar Sharma was hearing a batch of PILs seeking restoration of internet access on Tuesday, when it directed the constitution of the panel.

An internet shutdown has been imposed in the State since May 3, when ethnic violence broke out between the dominant Meitei community and the Scheduled Tribe Kuki-Zomi community. The violence has continued for almost two months.

The court, which is exploring ways to restore the Internet, first sought options to block social media websites. When the government and internet service providers submitted that this would still leave many consumers using VPN or virtual private network services to access blocked sites, the court sought ways to block VPN servers as well. 

On Tuesday, the Manipur Government submitted that it had already compiled a list of experts to be in such a committee. Reviewing this, the court then finalised the committee, which is to be chaired by a Joint Director of the Department of Information Technology in the Government of Manipur. 

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Other members include representatives from telcos — Airtel, BSNL, Vodafone, Reliance/Jio, two officers of the National Informatics Centre in Manipur, one representative of the Department of Telecommunications, one representative of the State E-Governance Mission Team, and two more officers from the IT Department of the State Government.