Srinagar, May 8: The central government has authorized the Lieutenant Governor (LG) of Jammu and Kashmir to exercise powers related to telecommunications in the Union Territory. This includes control over telecom services during public safety or national emergencies, signal interception, service suspension, and message decryption.
According to the order, the President has directed the LG to exercise the powers of the state government under Article 239 of the Constitution. These powers are granted under Section 20(2) of the Telecom Act, 2023 (44 of 2023), which pertains to matters of public safety and national security.
A notification issued by the central government on Thursday stated, “Under Article 239 of the Constitution, the President directs that the administrator (LG) of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir shall exercise the powers of the state government under Section 20(2) of the Telecom Act-2023, while remaining under the control of the President until further notice.”
Under these powers, the LG can halt the transmission of messages in any emergency or in the interest of public safety, authorize interception, order message decryption, and suspend telecom services.
It is noteworthy that officials often suspend telecom services in various parts of the Union Territory during anti-terrorism operations. This measure is taken to prevent trapped or hidden terrorists from communicating with their associates outside and to stop them from relaying information about security forces’ activities.
Additionally, controlling telecommunications aids security agencies and intelligence units in tracking terrorist communications and locating them.
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