The notification was issued after Governor NN Vohra amended the Jammu and Kashmir Government Employees Conduct Rules, 1971 affer sub-rule(3) of rule 13.
A major political storm has hit the Mehbooba Mufti-led Jammu and Kashmir government after it ordered a social media gag for its employees.
General Administration Department (GAD) of Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday issued a notification circular restricting the government employees from posting 'inflammatory, extraneous messages' on the social media.
The notification was issued after Governor NN Vohra amended the Jammu and Kashmir Government Employees Conduct Rules, 1971 affer sub-rule(3) of rule 13.
Under the new order, no government employee shall engage in any "criminal, dishonest, immoral or notoriously disgraceful conduct on social media which may be prejudicial to the government".
"They shall also not use their personal social media accounts for any political activity or endorse the posts or tweets or blogs of any political figure, and also shall not use their accounts in a manner that could reasonably be construed to imply that the Government endorses or sanctions their personal activities in any matter whatsoever. They shall also not post inflammatory, extraneous messages in an online community with the intent of provoking readers into an emotional response or of otherwise disrupting normal, on topic discussion," said the GAD notification.
This move has sparked a major political controversy with employees, opposition and separatists calling it a 'dictatorial' approach of the state government to silence the people.
The main opposition party National Conference has asked the government not to label entire employees community as 'terrorists'.
"The diktat, in the form of an amendment to the J&K Government Employees Conduct Rules 1971, aims to defame and vilify lakhs of government employees as either terrorists or anti-social elements who are apparently unable to differentiate between right and wrong in conducting themselves on a day-to-day basis", said Junaid Azim Mattu, National Conference State Spokesperson
Lambasting the government, the Congress has asked the government to withdraw the notification saying it is as an attack on the fundamental rights of the people.
Employees Joint Action Committee (EJAC) chairman Abdul Qayoom Wani said imposing restrictions on the employees over the use of social media exposes the dictatorial and regressive mindset of the present government.
Separatists too have jumped on to the bandwagon to lampoon the government's social media gag.
"Ordering gags and threatening punishment to State employees for expressing their opinion on social media completely exposes the aversion to truth or its disclosure by the occupational regime and its unscrupulous local agents!" tweeted Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, chairman of moderate Hurriyat Conference.
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