Govt blocks 12 pro-Khalistani websites

The government has ordered to block 12 websites linked to pro-Khalistani outfits, a source aware of the development said on Tuesday. Some of the blocked websites were being directly operated by outlawed organisation Sikhs for Justice (SFJ).

These websites were carrying pro-Khalistani content. "12 websites have been ordered to be blocked by the Ministry of Electronics and IT under section 69 A of the IT Act. They were supporting pro-Khalistani activities. The order was issued on Monday," the source - who did not wish to be identified - told PTI.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) is the nodal authority for monitoring the cyberspace in India. The banned websites include SFJ4Farmers, pbteam, seva413, pb4u, sadapind, among others with "org" extension.

"Your requested URL has been blocked as per the directions received from Department of Telecommunications, Government of India. Please contact administrator for more information," some of the banned websites said. Last year, the Home Ministry had banned SFJ for its anti-national activities.

SFJ had pushed for Sikh Referendum 2020 as part of its separatist agenda. The government had blocked 40 websites in July belonging to SFJ for supporting secessionist activities.