Since Sunday, a video showing the setting up of jammers at the protest site on the Xinhu border has been circulated on the Internet. The protesters in the video said that the motivation for this was the failure to make the rest of the country understand the turbulent development of farmers.
The protesters also said that the mobile phone loses its connection, and it is difficult to use the Internet even for simple things such as live broadcasting on social media or uploading/downloading files. The vehicle installed for this purpose can be seen in the video.
The video was shared by user @PriaINC on Twitter at 3:24 pm on December 6, and it appears to be from the now banned video sharing app Tiktok. Users accuse the government of "harassing their own people."
Since then, the video has been shared several times and sparked rumors, full of speculation. Several users said that this may be part of the government's larger tactic to disrupt the peace at the demonstration site. A user who used the @PVasanthibai username speculated that the government might do some incredible things.
Some users recommend using various applications such as Firechat to bypass jammers to access the Internet.
So far, there is no official information on the subject. Amaan Bali, a freelancer who reported on local protests, said that even if jammers have been installed, installing signal jammer is a common way to deal with Bandh calls. He also urged people to stop spreading conspiracy theories, as this may lead to intimidation tactics.
He said: "The purpose of the jammer is simple. The decline in Internet speed offsets the interference from the nationwide Bandh phone and its messages. We can contribute. Using WhatsApp. However, the download and upload of videos is hindered. )"
However, this is not the first time this has happened. The current government is notorious for using Internet bans to suppress differences. From the long-term Internet ban in Kashmir to frequent Internet shutdowns during CAA protests, it has become very common for the government to use Internet bans as a tool to contain those who dare to oppose. According to data from Internetshudown.in, a portal that tracks Internet bans in India, India’s Internet was shut down 95 times in 2019. Therefore, it is reasonable to worry about installing jammers on the border of Xinhu Lake, but it is recommended that you do not spread conspiracy theories without confirmation from official sources.