File photo of Meghalaya chief minister Conrad Sangma

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Tuesday said that the government is yet to decide when to restore the mobile internet service in the state after it was suspended since December 13 following violent protest against the passage of Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 in the parliament.

“I know it is causing inconveniences to the people but this is something which we do not want to do. There was disturbances in the past four to five days and we have seen to a large extend all these disturbances and tensions have come down,” Sangma told reporters.

The chief minister said that the government do not want to ban such important services, but it was forced to do so because maintenance of law and order situation and to ensure safety of the people is the priority of the state.

“The government will have to see the situation and decide,” he said when asked when the government will restore the internet mobile service.

Reacting to the opposition Congress dubbing the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government as “inefficient and bankrupt of ideas to deal with the given situation and governance,” by banning of internet, the chief minister said, “People will say what they have to say. My view and most important point have always been in any eventuality to ensure that people’s lives are safe. That is the priority for us.”

He also praised the state police for exercising maximum restraints and ensured that no serious injury was there and no life was lost.

Mobile internet service, including SMS, is being banned in the state in view of the protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act after miscreants set ablaze vehicles and vandalised shops in commercial areas of Shillong city in the past few days.

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