Indian authorities have blocked internet access for about 27 million people in the state of Punjab for a third straight day — one of the country’s most extensive blackouts in recent years — as police search for a Sikh separatist on the run.
The Punjab government initially announced a 24-hour internet ban on Saturday as authorities launched an operation to arrest Amritpal Singh, a popular leader within the separatist Khalistan movement that seeks to establish a sovereign state for followers of the Sikh religion.
The internet shutdown — which affects everyone in the northern Indian state — was extended by the government for a third time to midday Tuesday under a law that allows the connection to be cut to “prevent any incitement to violence and any disturbance of peace and public order.”
From CNN:
