In Northern India, there are the states of?Punjab and Haryana. So why do I talk about these two places? Because Northern India shuts down Internet service here.
But the situation is complex. There was a high profile rape case, and a local cult leader was the suspect. The cult leader stood trial for raping two of his women followers. So now, the trial is in deliberation phase, and everyone waits for a verdict. However, local governments got a bright idea (I say that with all sarcasm). Governments in Punjab and Haryana shut down all Internet and text messaging services. For five days, these Northern India citizens were left with no Internet, no texting, no nothing.
Some say it’s to keep the peace. Others say it’s to stop jury influence. But whatever the reason was, there was still damage and destruction. You see, the court found the cult leader guilty of rape. I don’t know what the sentence is, but his followers took to the streets in protests. The protest turned into riots. These riots killed 38 people. Also, that had to stop trains. Then, they had to shut down schools and businesses. Ironically, the carnage stopped when they turned the Internet back on.
So what’s to make of this? Well, this isn’t the first time. In the past, India locked up their own citizens for posting ‘blasphemous’ messages on social media. There are other instances as well. But I hope Northern India learned a lesson. Government censorship does not work! In fact, it might make situations worse. Now what if ?they let the Internet stay on? And what if they let people texted? What if they let IT support do their thing? ?That would have been a great place for people to vent their emotions. And free speech would let that happen. But when they shut down free speech, they let people’s anger build and build like a powder keg. The keg exploded. Dozens died. Countless more got injured, or scarred. So what good does censorship do to anybody?