UP police targets online CAA protestors - pulls up 19,000 social media accounts and arrests 124

• 124 people have been arrested so far in Uttar Pradesh for posting inciting content on social media.
  
• Over 19,000 social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube reported.
  
• 93 FIRs have been registered so far and preventive action taken against over 5,500 people.
  

The Uttar Pradesh police came down fast and hard on all those protested against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The police has swung into action and come hard on anti-CAA rioters. And, they used social media to identify the protestors.

The crackdown resulted in 124 arrests for posting ‘inciting’ on social media. A tweet by ANI UP mentions that over 19,000 accounts are affected. In some cases, posts are pulled down, while in others, accounts themselves are blocked. In all, posts from 9,372 Twitter profiles, 9856 Facebook accounts and 181 YouTubers are affected.

This is not the first time this has happened

This is not the first time that the Uttar Pradesh police has made large-scale arrests over social media posts. During the Ayodhya verdict in November, 79 people were arrested and 8,500 social media posts were pulled down.

O P Singh, the UP DGP in a statement said that special investigation teams have been formed to investigate the violence. And, internet services have been suspended in 21 districts temporarily and will be restored when the situation turns normal.

Mobile data and SMS to remain suspended

The Uttar Pradesh government has also announced that mobile internet services and SMS services of all providers except BSNL will remain suspended in Lucknow - the state capital - on December 27.

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