Srinagar : The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Centre and Jammu and Kashmir Administration to spell out their respective stand on the demand for restoration of 4G internet services in the Jammu and Kashmir union territory.
A Bench headed by Justice NV Ramana asked them to file an affidavit in this regard after Attorney General KK Venugopal said the issue involved national security.
“There are serious issues in Jammu and Kashmir. It’s a question of national security. Recently, a militant was killed and 500 people showed up for his funeral,” Venugopal told the Bench.
On behalf of Jammu and Kashmir Administration, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta sought time to file an affidavit, saying there were communication and other issues due to COVID-19 lockdown.
The top court is seized of three petitions on the issue, including one each by Foundation For Media Professionals and Private Schools Association of Jammu and Kashmir.
On behalf of the schools association, advocate Charu Ambwani said around 2200 schools were unable to offer online classes to their students for want of 4G internet services. The future of 27 lakh students was at stake, he submitted.
As Mehta asked how many students in Jammu and Kashmir had laptops and tabs, Ambwani said most of them had these gadgets. “The hardware is available. Internet connectivity is not there,” he said.
Senior advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, representing the Foundation, suggested that the areas where there were concerns about national security internet services could be restricted. But the internet restrictions should not be extended to the whole of Jammu and Kashmir, he argued.
Ahmadi said one can’t even consult a doctor without 4G during the lockdown.
Directing the Centre and Jammu and Kashmir Administration to get information about the ground situation in the union territory, the top court asked them to file detailed affidavits by Sunday.
The Bench—which has already issued notices on the petitions—posted the matter for further hearing on Monday.
Private Schools Association of Jammu and Kashmir has sought restoration of 4G services in the union territory, contending that the lack of proper internet connectivity violated the fundamental right to education of children.
The association an umbrella body of over 2,200 private schools across Jammu and Kashmir has challenged a series of government orders passed since January 18, 2020, restricting internet speed in the newly created union territory.
Limiting internet speed impacted the education sector, particularly during COVID19 lockdown when education was required to be imparted online, the association submitted.
Terming the order as arbitrary, Foundation For Media Professionals submitted that it amounted to a violation of the right to freedom of speech and expression, right to life and liberty as also right to education guaranteed under Articles 19, 21, and 21A of the Constitution.
After the nullification of Articles 370 and 35A of the Constitution in August last year, internet services were suspended in Jammu and Kashmir and even after the restoration of internet services the data transfer speed was limited to 2G.
At a time when there was a nationwide lockdown due to COVID19, granting limited access to internet services by restricting the speed to the only 2G in Jammu and Kashmir was unreasonable, the NGO contended.
The NGO sought to highlight that the right to the internet has been held to be a part of Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution.(KINS)
