Days after the Central government banned the Jamaat-e-Islami, Jammu and Kashmir, under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the government is said to be considering a curb on the online presence of the organisation, accusing it of using social media platforms to propagate its ideology and garner support.
Based on inputs by agencies, the government is set to give its nod to block the organisation’s website — jamaateislamijk.org — and plans to curb Jamaat’s social media activities on Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp, sources said.
“While a tribunal led by a judge will look into the Home Ministry’s ban order, the Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) is allegedly misusing the social media platforms to build a narrative against the government’s order. The notification banning JeI for five years was cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS),” a senior government official said.
The JeI’s Twitter handle has more than 5,800 followers, and on Thursday it had tweeted a photograph showing the organisation’s central offices being sealed. The post stated, “…Jamaat has already announced to challenge this arbitrary ban on our right peaceful assembly and religious freedom in the court of law.”
On Facebook, the organisation has termed the ban by the Centre as “unconstitutional” and “undemocratic”. The Facebook page, according to details available on its profile, was started in January 2013.
The Jamaat-e-Islami had earlier been banned, for two years, in 1975, and in April 1990 for three years.
