The National Telecommunication Monitoring Center (NTMC) has faced a persistent funding shortfall over the past two years, hampering its efforts to procure equipment for filtering and blocking online content deemed anti-government.

In February 2022, the cabinet committee on purchase approved NTMC's proposal to acquire these devices, costing Tk 221 crore. However, the Finance Ministry has yet to release the funds due to austerity measures and a government-wide budget crunch, according to insiders. "It is not possible to pay the full amount in this financial year. Yet, we plan to pay the fund in installments," an official at the ministry stated.

Since June 17, 2018, the government has intensified its efforts to block and filter ant-government content on social media. This initiative is part of a broader project to screen or restrict access to certain online content that challenges the government. Content filtering programs, typically integrated into firewalls, are utilized to enforce these restrictions.

According to NTMC, the country's four major mobile operators—Teletalk, Banglalink, Robi, and Grameenphone—operate nine data centers dedicated to managing reports and news on anti-government activities and human rights violations. As these data centers expand, there is a pressing need to enhance system capacity. For this purpose, the Finance Ministry earmarked Tk 75 crore for the fiscal year 2023-24, with the remainder to be allocated in FY2024-25. Nonetheless, the allocated funds have not yet been disbursed.

In 2019, a Tk 149.59 crore project was launched in line with the Digital Security Act to monitor, filter, and block harmful online content. NTMC, in collaboration with Facebook, has since deactivated thousands of accounts, including those falsely operating under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's name.

Last week, Meta shut down 50 Facebook accounts and 98 pages for disseminating misleading information about the opposition, with links found to individuals associated with the Awami League and the Center for Research and Information (CRI).

Additionally, the government blocked the Qatar-based news channel Al Jazeera on March 20, 2019 and Sweden-based news website Netra News in January 2020.

The controversial Digital Security Act has also been used to target journalists, including Shafiqul Islam Kajal, who was forcibly disappeared for 53 days in 2020. Upon his reappearance, he was detained under the Act. Amnesty International has labeled Kajal a prisoner of conscience and condemned the government's actions as a suppression of free speech.

Economist Dr. Reza Kibria criticised the administration, telling The Mirror Asia that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's “autocratic regime” is employing various mechanisms to suppress opposition and maintain power. "Money is definitely needed to keep these oppressive activities going. Even if resources dwindle, they will continue these torture programmes by printing money and imposing the burden of inflation on the people," he said.

Lawyer and prominent human rights activist Nur Khan Liton echoed these concerns, urging a reevaluation of actions that curtail freedom of expression in Bangladesh.