The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) is working with the Ministry of Home Affairs to crack down on such content, they said.
“There has been a rise in pro-Khalistani content online in India lately and this happens periodically,” one of the people said. “It happened even during the farmers’ protests. At times like this, the government does issue takedown orders or has those profiles restricted or withheld as it is speech that threatens national security and the sovereignty of India.”
Emails sent to MeitY and MHA seeking comment remained unanswered as of press time Tuesday.
Organisations like Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) led by pro-Khalistani activist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun have been declared unlawful and banned in India, but sources said their content circulates through sympathiser handles. Security experts ET spoke with said the heightened tension between New Delhi and Ottawa over extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar’s murder in Canada last year has provided a fertile ground for pro-Khalistan organisations to recruit, fundraise and indoctrinate youth about their ideology.
Pro-Khalistan organisations like the World Sikh Organisation (WSO) too have been active through their mouthpiece, Baaz, during this period, they said. The WSO handle on X (formerly Twitter) throws up a message – “@WorldSikhOrg has been withheld in IN (India) in response to a legal demand.” Handles of the SFJ and some others like @Khalistan2030 too have the same warning that pops up.
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“There has been a recent rise in pro-Khalistani content in India but that is because the Khalistani movement has no ground support in Punjab and so they are looking to gain sympathisers,” said Abhinav Pandya, chief executive of geopolitical and security affairs think tank Usanas Foundation. “We are seeing 10- to 15-second recorded voice messages that are being circulated on messaging platforms with messages promising an alternative model called the ‘Khalsa Raj’,” he said.Ottawa-based national security and foreign policy analyst Joe Adam George said pro-Khalistan organisations have become emboldened “to propagate their anti-India rhetoric since last year when (Canadian Prime Minister Justin) Trudeau publicly accused India of having a hand in the Nijjar assassination plot. Hence, it isn’t surprising to see a spike in pro-Khalistan content and activity as India-Canada tensions continue to escalate.”
Canada-based Nijjar was assigned the “terrorist” status by India in 2020.
In October this year, New Delhi decided to withdraw high commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma and other senior diplomats stationed in Canada. New Delhi also expelled six Canadian diplomats, including the acting high commissioner.
Calling the removal of Khalistani propaganda from social media an “ongoing exercise”, one of the people cited earlier said the blocking and takedown of such content by the Indian government is permitted under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act. This section gives the government the power to block online content in certain circumstances that include when it is to protect India’s sovereignty and integrity, to defend India, to protect the security of the state, to maintain friendly relations with foreign states, to maintain public order and to prevent the incitement of cognisable offenses.
“Even when it comes to Article 19 of the Constitution that protects freedom of speech and expression, it is subject to reasonable restrictions in the context of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States or incitement to an offence,” he added.
