Internet services have been suspended in Bhainsa, a small town in northern Telangana, in the wake of communal clashes. Mobile internet has been suspended in the town to prevent people from sharing any content that could aggravate the situation. The small town in Nirmal district, not far from the Maharasthra border, had last experienced an internet shutdown in January 2020 following similar communal clashes. The Hindu and Times of India were the first to report on the internet shutdown. Vishnu S. Warrier, Superintendent of Police, Nirmal district told MediaNama that the internet shutdown was put in place on the morning of Monday (February 8); it is still in place at the time of publishing this post. "The issue was because of some communal incident here. For ensuring peace and tranquility, we had to suspend internet due to rumours spreading on social media [...] By tonight it will be lifted," he said. The internet shutdown order is applicable only within a 10-kilometre radius in the town, and does not affect any other areas within Nirmal district, Warrier added. The SP had earlier told The Hindu that the shutdown was a temporary measure. When asked about this, he told MediaNama that more permanent measures would involve measures such as community policing to bring back normalcy to the town. The violence in the town had reportedly begun on Sunday. Over 12 people have been injured and hurt, including a Telugu media journalist, and 50 have been taken into custody. The Times of India…
