India BANS 4 Pakistan YouTube channels, 18 others; read full list of banned YouTube channels
India has just banned 4 Pakistan YouTube channels on the allegations they were spreading fake news and misinformation that could affect “national security, foreign relations and public order”. The ban on Pakistan YouTube channels was directed by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting which blocked a total of 22 YouTube channels. The other 18 channels belonged to various other publishers. The decision was taken in accordance with emergency powers of the IT Rules, 2021. So far, the government has issued bans on 78 YouTube channels but this is the first time action has been taken against Indian YouTube channels.
Explaining the decision, the Ministry said that the YouTube channels were posting “fake news on various subjects such as the Indian Armed Forces, Jammu and Kashmir, etc.”. Interestingly, the decision comes less than 24 hours after the Karauli riots in Rajasthan where communal violence took place. The Ministry stated that it suspected organized behavior noticing the content posted from these channels. It said, “The content ordered to be blocked also included certain anti-India content posted from multiple social media accounts operated in a coordinated manner from Pakistan”.
The entire operation was not limited to just the 22 YouTube accounts. The Ministry also banned three Twitter accounts, one Facebook account and one news website, all relating to the same offense of spreading misinformation and fake news. The problem of fake news has been rising a lot, with different platforms taking countermeasures to stop its spread. Just a few days ago, WhatsApp banned almost 1.5 million Indian accounts due to spreading fake messages, spams and other reports.
The list of blocked Pakistani Youtube channels include:
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