He shared an audio clip of his conversation with an Airtel executive, who explained that his number was suspended after directions from the West Bengal cyber police due to "fraud activity"
Hours after senior journalist Abhijit Majumdar alleged that his phone number was blocked by telecom operator Airtel on the orders of Kolkata cyber police, he said that the phone services has been resumed. The journalist on Friday alleged that his phone services were blocked on orders of the Mamata Banerjee government amid tensions in West Bengal over the rape and murder case of a 31-year-old Kolkata doctor.
“Airtel just resumed my phone services,” Abhijit Majumder, the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Earshot, posted on X.
Airtel just resumed my phone services. https://t.co/f6s4m7tZ3n— Abhijit Majumder (@abhijitmajumder) August 31, 2024
Earlier in the day, Majumdar on X stated, “My phone has been blocked. Called Airtel. It has been blocked by apparently cyber police, West Bengal. How is this even legal?”
In another post, he shared an audio clip of his conversation with an Airtel executive, who explained that his number was suspended after directions from the West Bengal cyber police due to “fraud activity.”
So, the police of #MamataBanerjee have blocked my phone number.I was talking too much about #KolkataDoctorDeath.They think they will silence me 🙂Called Airtel, this is what they said pic.twitter.com/8juvpZb75h— Abhijit Majumder (@abhijitmajumder) August 30, 2024
“So, the police of #MamataBanerjee have blocked my phone number. I was talking too much about #KolkataDoctorDeath. They think they will silence me 🙂 Called Airtel, this is what they said,” Majumder remarked.
Speaking on the suspension, Majumder told CNN-News18, “I haven’t received any communique from the West Bengal Police. The telecom ministry has informed me that they are investigating the matter. My posts are public.”
Targeting West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Majumder criticised the action as “unlawful” and a form of “dictatorship”.
“This action is unlawful, this is dictatorship. They should provide evidence for these allegations. My outgoing and incoming calls were barred,” he asserted.
Majumder also questioned the connection between Airtel and the West Bengal government, stating, “I thought number blocking could only be authorised by the central government.”
Responding to Majumder’s post, Kanchan Gupta, senior advisor at the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, condemned the suspension as “unacceptable” and questioned the lack of details or charges against the journalist.
Unacceptable.Per @airtelindia@Airtel_Presence wellknown journalist @abhijitmajumder ‘s Cell has been blocked nationwide and globally by @WBPolice / @KolkataPolice Cyber Cell who have cited ‘fraud’ as the reason.No details, no charges, no information, nothing.Abhijit is a… https://t.co/3HFkh1p2mf— Kanchan Gupta (@KanchanGupta) August 31, 2024
“No details, no charges, no information, nothing. Abhijit is a trenchant critic of TMC Govt and has been highlighting lapses in RG Kar case. West Bengal is now a Police State?,” Gupta noted.
Abhijit Majumder is a senior journalist. He also contributes to Network18 as a columnist and commentator.
