Hailing the verdict of the Supreme Court directing the government to restore 4G in a phased manner, Mr. Harsh Dev Singh, Chairman-JKNPP & former Minister urged upon the helmsmen to honour the directives of the Apex Court without any further loss of time. He said that the SC had rightly turned down the request of the State government seeking time on the plea of change of Lt. Governor. It was rightly pointed out that with the change of Lt. Governor nothing changes and that the government needed to explore the possibility of restoring high speed mobile internet services as the matter could no further be delayed, revealed Singh.

          While the SC had shown its reluctance to give further adjournments over the issue, it was disturbing to note that the centre government was insisting for more time only to delay, deny and deprive the people of J&K of the facility of 4G services. He said that despite a categoric statement by the erstwhile Lt. Governor Murmu that his administration had no objection to restoration of 4G services, the contradictory stand being taken by New Delhi rulers was totally unjustified. It was an authoritarian and dictatorial move to suspend 4G services with no reasonable justification for the same. The outgoing LG had very unambiguously stated that anti nationals had been executing their nefarious designs even with the 2G services and denying 4G merely on the pretext of security reasons was highly illogical, recalled Singh. He said that while asking the government to explore the possibility of restoring 4G services in certain areas, the Court had very aptly asked the government to explain as to how and on what basis the earlier Lt. Governor had given his opinion about restoration of 4G services in J&K.

          With more than one year of 4G mobile internet ban, the erstwhile J&K had suffered immensely in all fields including education, trade, industry, media besides huge losses to all other sections of society. The students, youth and the civil society, the social and political organizations except BJP had been strongly pleading for restoration of the said services with the central government strongly taking an opposite stand which had sparked massive outrage, said Singh. He expressed the hope that the orders of the Supreme Court would be honoured immediately and 4G restored in a phased manner in J&K without further loss of time.