ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Saturday ordered a ban on all Indian content on TV channels, setting aside an earlier verdict by a lower court, officials said.
Chief Justice Saqib Nisar issued the order in Karachi while hearing a case filed by producers’ associations relating to the broadcasting of foreign content on Pakistan television channels.
Pakistan newspaper Dawn reported the judge referenced clashes with India over the construction of the planned Diamer-Basha dam in the country’s north, located in territory disputed by Delhi, as justification.
An official of Pakistan Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) said Nisar ordered to “stop airing all Indian content on TV channels.”
The ruling covers terrestrial, satellite and cable channels.
Khalid Arain, chairman of Pakistan Cable Operators Association confirmed the verdict, but hit out against the order.
“Ban on the all the Indian content is not the solution, rather we should try to better the quality of Pakistani TV shows,” Arain told AFP.
Earlier this year, India banned performances by Pakistani artists, and some Indian stations have stopped airing Pakistani content. Indian producers have called for a comprehensive ban on Pakistani content, and Hindu extremists have threatened to attack cinemas showing films featuring Pakistani artists.
In 2017, the Lahore High court had lifted a ban on Indian TV shows which had been imposed by authorities in October 2016 amid heightened tensions between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan over the disputed Kashmir region.
In a series of tit-for-tat moves in the entertainment industry, Pakistan that year suspended screening of all Indian movies until tensions calmed, while Hindu nationalists in India have threatened violence at cinemas showing films with Pakistani actors.
Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since the end of British colonial rule in 1947. Both claim the Himalayan territory in full and the countries have fought two wars over the region.
Pakistan’s top court reinstates ban on Indian content on TV channels
Pakistan’s top court reinstates ban on Indian content on TV channels
- Earlier this year, India banned performances by Pakistani artists, and some Indian stations have stopped airing Pakistani content
- The Lahore High court last year had lifted a ban on Indian TV shows which had been imposed by authorities in October 2016 amid heightened tensions between the two countries
Pakistan telecom regulator urges restraint on social media amid regional tensions
- PTA warns against sharing unverified content, says legal action may follow ‘fake news’
- Advisory comes as Pakistan strikes targets in Afghanistan and Iran faces US, Israeli attacks
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s telecom regulator on Saturday urged citizens to avoid sharing “unverified or inflammatory” content online, warning that legal action could be taken against those spreading misinformation amid what it described as a “sensitive national situation.”
The advisory from the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) comes as Islamabad says it is targeting militant positions inside Afghanistan following a recent flareup between the two neighbors, while Iran is under attack by the United States and Israel in an escalating regional conflict that has heightened security concerns across South and West Asia.
“In view of the prevailing sensitive national situation, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) urges all citizens to be responsible while using social media and digital platforms,” the regulator said in a statement posted on X.
The PTA advised citizens “not to share, disseminate, forward, or upload any unverified, inflammatory, or misleading information/content that may directly or indirectly harm the national interest, public order, or state institutions.”
It said people should instead rely on authentic information based on official sources and refrain from spreading rumors and “fake news.”
“Sharing any fake news/information is liable to legal action in accordance with applicable laws,” the authority said, calling on citizens to act with “caution, maturity, and a strong sense of national responsibility” to help maintain stability and public confidence.
Pakistan in recent years has witnessed increasingly stringent implementation of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), a cybercrime law that has drawn criticism from rights groups, with journalists and activists arrested and prosecuted under its provisions.
