Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission chair Md Mohiuddin Ahmed directed the internet shutdown during the recent protests, following verbal instructions from former state minister for posts, telecommunication, and information technology Zunaid Ahmed Palak.
According to a press release issued on Tuesday by the ministry, a seven-member committee investigated the shutdown and submitted a preliminary report that mobile internet was cut off from July 15-16, and broadband services were disrupted from July 18 to 23 and again on August 5, all under Palak鈥檚 verbal orders, with the BTRC chair executing the instructions without any administrative approval.
The report also indicated that the National Telecommunication Monitoring Centre under the home ministry directed the shutdown and restoration of mobile internet services between July 17 and 28 and on August 5.
The investigation found no links between the fire at the data centre and the internet shutdown.
The report concluded that the former state minister misled the public by falsely connecting the fire to the internet disruptions.
A seven-member committee was formed on August 11 to submit an investigation report on the instructions of Md Nahid Islam, adviser to the ministry of posts, telecommunications and information Technology regarding the cause and relevance of the nationwide internet shutdown.
The government shut down mobile internet services on July 17 and broadband internet on July 18, amid widespread violence over the quota reform protests. The social media platforms were also blocked by the government.
Several economic activities including utility bill payments, online banking, and e-commerce and digital communications halted due to the shutdown.
The broadband connection was restored countrywide on July 24, mobile internet on July 28, and social media platforms were unblocked on July 31.
Mobile internet users, however, were unable to access some social media accounts for about seven hours on August 2.
Mobile internet and Facebook were blocked again on August 4, and both mobile and broadband internet services were shut again for a few hours on August 5.
The internet was fully restored at around 3:00pm on August 5, when Sheikh Hasina resigned from the post of prime minister and fled the country.