India Internet Censorship Report 2026: What's Blocked & Why
India is the world's largest democracy and simultaneously one of the most active countries when it comes to internet censorship. According to data compiled from government transparency reports and digital rights organisations, India issued more website blocking orders in 2025 than any other democratic nation. That paradox — free speech enshrined in the Constitution alongside sweeping content restrictions — defines the Indian internet experience in 2026.
This report provides a comprehensive overview of what is blocked in India, the legal mechanisms used to enforce those blocks, the history of major bans and shutdowns, and practical solutions for Indian users who want to access the open internet safely and legally. Whether you are a journalist, a student, a remote worker, or simply someone who believes in unrestricted access to information, this report is for you.
The Legal Framework: How India Blocks the Internet
India's internet censorship operates through several distinct legal mechanisms, each with different scope, oversight, and transparency levels.
Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 is the primary weapon. This section empowers the central government to direct any intermediary — ISPs like Jio, Airtel, BSNL, and Vi, as well as social media platforms — to block public access to any information that threatens India's sovereignty, defence, security, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, or is needed to prevent incitement to a cognisable offence. The process involves orders issued by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) through a committee that reviews blocking requests. Crucially, these orders are classified as confidential — the government is not legally required to publicly disclose which websites have been blocked or why.
Court orders represent the second major mechanism. Indian courts, from district courts to the Supreme Court, can order websites and content blocked. The most famous example is the ongoing series of orders related to piracy, where copyright holders (particularly Bollywood studios and cricket broadcasters) obtain "dynamic injunction" orders that allow them to block new URLs hosting pirated content without returning to court each time. John Doe orders, known locally as Ashok Kumar orders, have been widely used to pre-emptively block websites that might stream IPL matches or new Bollywood releases illegally.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority and DoT directives add another layer. ISPs receive direct instructions from the Department of Telecommunications to block specific URLs, IP addresses, or entire domains. These instructions are often delivered through the TRAI-DoT channel and ISPs are obligated to comply immediately. The lack of a centralised public registry means that blocking is inconsistent — a website blocked on Jio might still be accessible on Airtel, and vice versa, depending on how each ISP implements the blocking order.
The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 expanded the government's toolkit further. These rules require social media platforms with over five million users to appoint compliance officers in India, respond to government takedown requests within 36 hours, and enable traceability of message originators (particularly targeting WhatsApp and encrypted messaging services).
What Is Currently Blocked in India: The Numbers
Pinning down exact figures is difficult because of the secrecy surrounding Section 69A orders. However, using data from digital rights organisations, FOIA requests, court records, and technical testing, we can paint a reasonably accurate picture.
Website blocks: As of early 2026, estimates suggest that between 35,000 and 50,000 individual URLs are blocked across Indian ISPs. This includes approximately 8,000 to 10,000 unique domains. The categories of blocked content include pornographic websites (following the Supreme Court's 2015 direction and subsequent government action), piracy and torrent sites, political content deemed sensitive to national security, certain foreign news outlets, VPN and proxy service websites (ironically), and websites associated with banned organisations.
App bans: India has banned over 300 Chinese-origin apps since June 2020, including TikTok, WeChat, Shareit, UC Browser, PUBG Mobile (later partially reinstated as BGMI under Krafton), CamScanner, and many others. These bans were enacted under Section 69A citing national security and data sovereignty concerns, particularly following the India-China border tensions. As of 2026, TikTok remains banned in India — the longest-running major app ban in any democratic country.
Social media restrictions: Twitter (now X), YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook have all received takedown orders affecting Indian users. Twitter's transparency report showed India as the country issuing the most legal demands for content removal globally in 2024 and 2025. The government has ordered removal of accounts and posts related to farmer protests, Kashmir coverage, COVID-19 criticism, and content related to religious and communal tensions.
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Regional internet shutdowns: This is where India stands in a league of its own. According to Access Now and the Software Freedom Law Centre of India, India conducted more internet shutdowns than any other country in the world for the seventh consecutive year in 2025. Over 700 shutdowns have been documented since 2016. Jammu and Kashmir remains the most affected region, having experienced the longest internet shutdown in any democracy — 552 consecutive days from August 2019 to February 2021. Shutdowns have also affected Rajasthan (during exam periods), Manipur (during ethnic violence), Haryana (during protests), and Punjab.
Major Censorship Events: A Timeline
Understanding the trajectory of Indian internet censorship helps put the current situation in context.
2015: The government ordered ISPs to block 857 pornographic websites following a Supreme Court observation about child pornography. The blanket approach was criticised for overreach, and some blocks were partially reversed.
2020 (June-November): Three waves of Chinese app bans removed 267 apps from Indian app stores, including TikTok (which had over 200 million Indian users), PUBG Mobile, and dozens of utility apps. This remains the largest mass app ban by any democracy.
2021: During the farmer protests, the government ordered Twitter to block over 500 accounts and suspend access to certain hashtags. Twitter initially complied, then restored some accounts, leading to a public standoff between the company and the government. The IT Rules 2021 came into effect, expanding government control over digital media.
2022: The CERT-In directive required VPN providers to store user logs, leading most international VPN companies to remove their physical servers from India. Multiple VPN provider websites were blocked on some ISPs.
2023-2024: The Manipur ethnic violence led to extended internet shutdowns in the state. The government ordered removal of content related to the violence from social media. Wikipedia faced brief blocking threats over content disputes. Several independent news websites faced intermittent blocking.
2025-2026: Internet shutdowns during state elections and protests continued. The pattern of using shutdowns as a first response to civil unrest remained unchanged despite Supreme Court guidelines in the Anuradha Bhasin judgment requiring proportionality and judicial review of shutdown orders.
How VPNs Help Indian Users Bypass Censorship
A VPN is the most practical tool available to Indian internet users for accessing blocked content. Here is how it works in the Indian context:
When you connect to a VPN, your internet traffic is encrypted and routed through a server in another country. Your ISP — whether it is Jio, Airtel, BSNL, or Vi — can see that you are connected to a VPN server, but it cannot see what websites you are visiting or what content you are accessing. Since the ISP implements the government's blocking orders at the DNS and IP level, encrypting your traffic and routing it through a foreign server effectively bypasses these blocks.
For website blocks: Connecting to any server outside India immediately restores access to blocked websites. Whether it is a torrent site, a blocked news portal, or a restricted social media post, a VPN circumvents ISP-level DNS blocking and IP blocking. NordVPN India deal servers in Singapore are particularly effective for this — they are geographically close, so speed loss is minimal, and they reliably unblock all tested restricted content.
For app bans: VPNs alone do not restore access to banned apps since they are removed from the Indian Google Play Store and Apple App Store. However, by connecting to a VPN and sideloading APK files on Android, users can access the services. Some users combine a VPN with a foreign app store account to download banned apps.
For internet shutdowns: This is the one area where VPNs have limited effectiveness. During a full internet shutdown, all connectivity is cut at the infrastructure level — there is simply no internet connection to encrypt. However, during partial shutdowns where only mobile data is cut but broadband remains active, or where specific services are blocked rather than all connectivity, a VPN can restore access. During several recent shutdowns, users with broadband connections have reported that Surfshark deal with its obfuscated servers maintained connectivity when other VPNs failed.
For ISP throttling of specific services: Indian ISPs frequently throttle specific services during peak hours. A VPN prevents your ISP from identifying what service you are using, effectively preventing targeted throttling. This is particularly relevant during major IPL matches when ISPs sometimes struggle with streaming traffic management.
Staying Safe: Practical Recommendations
If you are an Indian internet user concerned about censorship and privacy, here are actionable steps:
Use a reputable VPN with servers outside India. After the CERT-In directive, the safest VPNs for Indian users are those that removed their physical servers from India and now offer virtual Indian servers from Singapore or other nearby locations. NordVPN, Surfshark, and ExpressVPN are the three most reliable options for Indian users. You can try ExpressVPN which offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, giving you time to test whether it reliably bypasses the specific blocks you are encountering.
Configure your VPN before a shutdown hits. If you are in a region prone to internet shutdowns, keep your VPN app installed, configured, and ready to use. Download the VPN app and sign in before you need it — during a partial shutdown, you might not be able to access the VPN provider's website to download the app. Keep the APK file saved locally as a backup.
Use DNS-over-HTTPS as a complementary tool. Many Indian website blocks are implemented at the DNS level. Simply changing your DNS resolver to Cloudflare (1.1.1.1) or Google (8.8.8.8) bypasses some blocks without needing a full VPN. However, this does not encrypt your traffic or hide your browsing from your ISP, so it is not a substitute for a VPN.
Support digital rights organisations. The Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF), Software Freedom Law Centre of India, and Access Now are organisations that actively fight disproportionate censorship through litigation, advocacy, and transparency reporting. Their work benefits every Indian internet user.
Know your rights. The Supreme Court of India has recognised the right to access the internet as part of the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution (Anuradha Bhasin v. Union of India, 2020). Internet shutdowns and website blocks must be proportionate, necessary, and subject to judicial review. If you believe a block is unjustified, legal remedies are available.
The state of internet freedom in India in 2026 is a mixed picture. On one hand, India has a vibrant digital ecosystem with over 900 million internet users, booming digital services, and a tech-savvy population. On the other hand, the legal and technical infrastructure for censorship is extensive and growing. A VPN is not a silver bullet, but it remains the most effective and accessible tool for Indian users who want to maintain access to the open internet while staying within the boundaries of the law.
Vikram Patel
VPN Security ExpertVikram has tested 50+ VPNs from servers across India. With 8 years in cybersecurity, he helps millions find the right VPN for privacy, streaming, and savings.