�Anonymous� to hit road for Web freedom protest

NEW DELHI, June 9: A worldwide group of Web hacking activists, working under the banner of �Anonymous�, will hold protests across major cities in India, including here, against what they claim as �growing censorship of internet�.The protest in India is being spearheaded by �Save Your Voice� and would take place today at various historic monuments in 16 cities, including at Jantar Mantar here.A convenor of the campaign Alok Dixit told over phone that around 100-200 masked protesters were expected at Jantar Mantar alone, while many others would support online through various forums like blogs and social networking websites.As per a Facebook page of the protesters, �it is a campaign against Web censorship in India�. It alleged that the Indian Government was �attempting to control Internet space through unlawful means�.The �hacktivists� have also threatened to disrupt websites of various government departments in their protest.Earlier this week on June 6, the website of state-run telecom company MTNL was disrupted by �Anonymous� to protest against �censorship� of the internet.MTNL�s corporate website could not be accessed for over four hours, following the attack, but its individual city-specific websites (for Delhi and Mumbai) remained unaffected.A post on the Anonymous Operation India Web page that day claimed responsibility for the hacking saying �we are against Internet Censorship�.That day itself, the group had asked netizens to wear �Guy Fawkes� masks, which have become synonymous with Occupy Wall Street protests, during a fresh round of peaceful protests to be held on June 9. (PTI)