- By Shubham Bajpai
- Thu, 02 Oct 2025 11:17 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
In the fallout of the chaos over the I Love Muhammad row in UP's Bareilly, the Home Department on Thursday clamped down the mobile internet and SMS services in the city as a precautionary move for Dussehra festivities.
The city, which was normalising after the September 26 violent clashes between the police and miscreants, suddenly went into chaos after 2 PM due to the network restriction, as the internet shutdown prevented people from making online payments and reaching out to one another for any help.
QR scanners, debit and credit cards were not working. Even at the Dussehra fairs in the evening, problems in spending through the online mode of payment were witnessed as people have now become habitual to it and no longer carry cash in their pockets.
A large number of customers had to return without even eating at the fair. Even those who went for small purchases were forced to deal with the hassle of cash and change.
Market conditions since Friday tensions
The chaos that erupted after Friday prayers on September 26 in the city has been particularly affecting merchants and the general public. Markets remained closed on Friday, while internet services were disrupted on Saturday and Sunday.
When internet services resumed on Monday, the markets again caught pace. On Tuesday's Ashtami and Wednesday's Navami, the eighth day of Navratri, there was a surge in shopping. The highest sales were of vehicles, including cars, bikes, e-bikes, scooters, as well as electrical and electronic items.
Following this, the market was buzzing with Dussehra shopping on Thursday, when, suddenly on Thursday afternoon, a letter started getting shared, in which it was mentioned that internet services would be shut down from 3 pm.
People remained confused for a long time, but neither the administration nor the police provided any clarification. Internet services were suddenly disrupted in the evening, disrupting business worth crores of rupees in the market.
What did merchants and customers say?
Anjani Kumar, the operator of the popular paan shop in Butler Plaza, said that many customers turned away due to the inability to pay online. Pappu Kashyap, the owner of a food stall, echoed the sentiment. He explained that after Navratri, a large number of people came to the hotels and dhabas to eat, but due to the inability to pay online, about 25 per cent of them turned away, while 5 per cent had to borrow money.
Vibha, a customer, explained that in the era of e-wallets, online payments, carrying cash in one's pocket has become out of fashion, but due to the internet outage, she stocked up on cash and change before leaving the house to avoid any hassle. Similarly, sales of other products were affected by the internet outage, and this will continue.