According to government sources, India has banned sixteen Pakistani YouTube channels, which collectively have 63 million subscribers, for disseminating provocative and communally sensitive material following the Pahalgam terror attack. The Union Home Ministry recommended banning the YouTube channels.
The prohibited platforms consist of the YouTube channels belonging to news organizations Dawn, Samaa TV, ARY News, Bol News, Raftar, Geo News, and Suno News. The YouTube channels of reporters Irshad Bhatti, Asma Shirazi, Umar Cheema, and Muneeb Farooq have likewise been banned. Additional banned accounts comprise The Pakistan Reference, Samaa Sports, Uzair Cricket, and Razi Naama.
As per government sources, these YouTube channels have been spreading provocative and community-sensitive material, inaccurate and misleading narratives, and misinformation targeting India, its Army, and security forces amid heightened tensions between the neighboring nations following the Pahalgam tragedy, where 25 tourists and a Kashmiri were brutally killed by terrorists.
If one tries to access these channels, they will be greeted by the following message: “This content is currently unavailable in this country because of an order from the government related to national security or public order. For more details about government removal requests, please visit the Google Transparency Report (transparencyreport.google.com).”
