“Unnecessary and disproportionate” experts SLAM 2-months VPN ban forced in India
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- Doda, a district in the Jammu and Kashmir region in India, gave a 2-month VPN ban on national security problems
- The prohibition was enforced on May 2, 2025, whereby some VPN users are reportedly held after that date
- Experts warn about the attack on the digital rights of people, while questioning the legality prohibition
Doda, a district in the Jammu and Kashmir region in India, maintained a VPN ban of 2 months on 2 May 2025 on national security problems.
Authorities have issued the prohibition on the basis of section 163 of the new BNSS legislation (the equivalent of the Indian Code of Criminal Law), with reference to individuals and groups abusing Virtual Private Network (VPN) Tools “to bypass legal cyber restrictions and gain access to prohibited applications,” the Order Read.
Digital rights and legal experts have greatly criticized this decision so far. They warn about the attack on the digital rights and safety of people, while questioning the legality.
Is Doda’s VPN Ban Legal?
The VPN prohibition of the Doda is intended to “limit the use of VPNs in the interest of public safety,” and it has been extended to all persons, institutions, internet providers and cyber cafés that are active in the district.
This means that all residents none of the Best VPN Services or similar tools for two months to prevent you from being liable for legal steps.
Repercussions for alleged use of VPNs already seem to have started. In a report published on May 18, Indian publication The wire reported Accusations that a non -specific number of residents of Doda under “Technical Surveillance” has already been arrested as found as VPNs.
Two days earlier, Doda’s authorities had already confirmed it To “have held different people in the district before breaking the directive.”
This is why many experts have expressed concern about how the prohibition can influence the rights of people, such as free speech, free access to information and privacy.
In conversation with Techradar, senior policy advisor and coding policy now lead access to Access, Namrata Maheshwari, explains that the right to the internet and the right to privacy are the fundamental rights under the Indian Constitution.
Maheshwari also pointed out how the Indian government has already implemented “a heavy mandate” for VPN providers when it enforces a new one Data retention legislation in 2022.
A large number of online services are now required to store users up to five years and to share it with authorities on request, in fact something that led to a Exodus of large VPN companies From the country.
VPNs are not illegal. “
Namrata Maheshwari, now access
Yet “VPN’s are not illegal,” Maheshwari said, adding that a general ban on all VPNs for two months is “unnecessary and disproportionate”.
“People have a fundamental right to information and freedom of expression, and limitations on these rights must be legal, necessary and proportional – a standard that this ban does not meet,” she added.
However, the prohibition has no influence on individual users, but also companies and settings that regularly use these services for security purposes.
According to Maheshwari, the prohibition could subsequently increase vulnerabilities in the cyberspace of the country, eventually weakening safety in contrast to strengthening it.
She said: “Even in emergency situations, preventive measures cannot be so vague and transmitting, especially where less intrusive agents are available.”
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