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In India, a temporary suspension order may be issued by the Union Home Secretary for the Central Government or by the secretary in charge of a State Government’s Home Department. The current procedure is set out in the Telecommunications (Temporary Suspension of Services) Rules, 2024: an order must be reasoned, published, limited to a defined area and service, and set for no more than 15 days.
Which law applies now?
The governing framework is the Telecommunications (Temporary Suspension of Services) Rules, 2024, made under the Telecommunications Act, 2023. The rules took effect when published on 22 November 2024, replacing the 2017 suspension rules. The relevant provisions of the Act, including section 20, came into force on 26 June 2024, according to the Department of Telecommunications’ June 2024 announcement.
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The 2024 rules cover temporary suspension of a telecommunication service or class of services. They are not limited to mobile data by their wording. In a February 2026 answer to Parliament, the Department of Telecommunications said that generally internet services are suspended in an affected region while voice calling and SMS remain available. That is the government’s description of the general practice, not a guarantee that every order will leave calls and texts unaffected. See the Lok Sabha answer of 4 February 2026.
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Who is allowed to issue a shutdown order?
The rules name a competent authority for each level of government:
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- Central Government: the Union Home Secretary.
- State Government: the secretary in charge of that state’s Home Department.
So a state government can issue an order, but the designated authority under the rules is the Home Department secretary—not any official acting without the prescribed authority. The rules also provide a narrow emergency route, described below.
What must an order say and do?
Before issuing an order, the authority must consider whether the objectives set out in section 20 of the Act can be achieved by another reasonable means. The order must meet the procedural requirements in rule 3:
- Record the reasons for the suspension in writing.
- Be published.
- Specify the telecommunication service or class of services affected.
- Define the geographical area covered.
- Specify a duration of no more than 15 days.
The 15-day limit is the maximum specified duration for an order under the 2024 rules; it is not evidence that every order lasts that long. For any particular shutdown, the order’s own stated duration and scope matter.
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What happens if an order is issued in an emergency?
If unavoidable circumstances prevent the competent authority from issuing the order, an officer whom that authority has duly authorized and who is not below the rank of Joint Secretary may issue it. The competent authority must confirm the order within 24 hours. If it is not confirmed within that period, it ceases to exist.
How is an order reviewed?
A copy of each order must be sent to the relevant review committee within 24 hours of issuance. The committee must meet within five days and record whether the order complies with section 20(2)(b) and section 20(4) of the Telecommunications Act. If the committee finds that it does not comply, it may set the order aside.
Central Government review committee
The Cabinet Secretary chairs the central committee. Its other members are the Secretary of the Department of Legal Affairs and the Secretary of the Department of Telecommunications.
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State Government review committee
The Chief Secretary chairs a state committee. Its other members are the state’s Secretary of Law or Legal Remembrancer in charge of legal affairs, and a State Government secretary other than the Home Secretary.
How to assess a specific shutdown order
To understand whether an order follows the current framework, look for the order itself and check these points:
- Authority: Is it issued by the Union Home Secretary or the state Home Department secretary, or does it identify a duly authorized Joint Secretary-rank officer using the emergency procedure?
- Reasons and alternatives: Are written reasons given, and does the record show that the authority considered whether another reasonable means could achieve the stated objectives?
- Coverage: Does the order identify the affected service and clearly define the geographical area?
- Duration and publication: Is it published, and does it state a duration within the 15-day maximum?
- Review timing: Was it forwarded to the committee within 24 hours, and did the committee meet within five days?
These are procedural checks, not a substitute for legal advice about a particular order or its constitutional validity.
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What changed from the 2017 rules?
The 2024 rules superseded the Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Safety) Rules, 2017. An order made under the 2017 rules continues to be governed by its terms until its stated expiry; the replacement did not automatically rewrite those existing orders.
A 2021 Parliamentary Standing Committee report examined the earlier regime and recommended clearer parameters for public emergency and public safety, more inclusive review, consideration of selective restrictions where practicable, and studies of shutdowns’ effects and effectiveness. Those recommendations described the committee’s proposals under the then-applicable framework; they should not be mistaken for additional requirements in the 2024 rules. The report summary is available from PRS Legislative Research.
What official data is available on shutdowns?
Central records are not a complete register of state and Union Territory orders. In an answer to the Rajya Sabha on 7 August 2025, the Department of Telecommunications said that, because police and public order are State subjects, it does not centrally maintain details of suspension orders issued by State Governments and Union Territories. The answer said that permissions issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs for temporary suspensions are available on the MHA website. Read the Rajya Sabha answer.
In a separate answer on 4 February 2026, the department said it had no data on financial losses incurred due to internet shutdowns during the five-year period asked about. That describes the department’s records; it does not establish that no outside estimates exist. The parliamentary answers cited here therefore do not provide a complete official national shutdown count or a department-wide loss estimate.
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