NEW DELHI: The government has blocked 12 websites linked to pro-Khalistani outfits for allegedly supporting secessionist activities, officials said on Tuesday. Some of the blocked websites were being directly operated by banned group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ).
Earlier in July, the government had banned 40 websites belonging to US-based SFJ. A senior government functionary said the order to this effect was issued on Monday by the Ministry of Electronics and IT under Section 69 A of the IT Act. The ministry issued the order on a recommendation from the Ministry of Home Affairs, sources said.
The Ministry of Electronics and IT (MEITY) is the nodal authority for monitoring the cyberspace in India. The banned websites include SFJ4Farmers, pbteam, seva413, pb4u, sadapind, among others with “org” extension. “Your requested URL has been blocked as per the directions received from Department of Telecommunications, Government of India.
Please contact the administrator for more information,” stated these websites. Last year, the Home Ministry had banned the SFJ for its anti-national activities. In July, SFJ’s Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, spearheading a campaign under the banner of “Referendum 2020”, was designated as an ‘individual terrorist’ under recently amended fourth schedule of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Amendment Act.
Websites
The Ministry of Electronics and IT is the nodal authority for monitoring the cyberspace in India. The banned websites include SFJ4Farmers, pbteam, seva413, pb4u, sadapind, among others with “org” extension.