No jobs, passports for ‘anti-nat’l’ social media posts in India

At least three Indian states are denying passports and government jobs to people because of their social media posts or participation in protests, human rights activists said.

In a move that could jeopardise the futures of tens of thousands of vocal young Indians, authorities in Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar and Uttarakhand have issued such orders, as India clamps down on dissent online and on the ground.

"It is a reprehensible move - the police have no right to decide whether any post on social media is anti-national or not," said Nasir Khuehami, a student leader in the restive region of Jammu and Kashmir, enmeshed in turmoil for decades.

"The need of the hour is to not create more hassles in the path of thousands of Kashmiri youth who are now in jobs or studying. It will push the youth into further alienation," he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

In Bihar, state police said participating in any kind of protest could result in clearances being denied for passports and government jobs.

"Such people have to be prepared for serious consequences," said Bihar's director general of police S K Singhal.

Earlier this year, police in the northern state of Uttarakhand said they would monitor social media posts and maintain a record of those that are "anti-national" or "anti-social", and reject passport applications accordingly.

Across Asia, lawmakers have introduced a slew of legislation for governments to access internet users' data and block so-called false news, which human rights groups say raises the risk of mass surveillance and free speech violations.