NEW DELHI: A meeting of the parliamentary standing committee on information technology headed by Shashi Tharoor saw a sharp exchange between BJP and opposition over whether “national security” issues can be taken up in the context of suspension of internet and telecom services, particularly in Jammu & Kashmir.
The commitee proceedings saw home secretary Ajay Bhalla writing to the panel saying rule 270 of conduct of business of Lok Sabha allowed the government to withhold a document if it was judged to be prejudicial to the interest of the state. He said it was verified from the Lok Sabha secretariat that the committee intended to primarily discuss J&K.
BJP MPs Rajyavardhan Rathore, Nishikant Dubey, Anil Agarwal and Sanjay Seth argued that area-specific internet clampdown in J&K was a “law and order issue” and a state subject and was further pending in the Supreme Court, and could not be taken up by the committee. Tharoor, however, overruled the objections on grounds that this was an ongoing discussion. This led to a heated discussion with Dubey saying that central rule in ertwhile J&K was repeatedly extended from 1990 to 1996 and it was understood that the situation there was extraordinary. Similarly the current internet curbs were based on specific assessment that Pakistan backed terrorists can misuse the facilities.
Sources said he also spoke with Tharoor over phone, who assured him that the committee was “not interfering” in matters of national security. Subsequently, MHA officials appeared before the panel.