Blocked again? India reinstates ban on Pakistani celebs’ social media accounts amid backlash

Officials also said that a few handles on X, YouTube or Meta which may still appear accessible to some users, will become inaccessible within a few hours

Following the social media accounts of Pakistani actors’ and cricketers becoming accessible in India on Wednesday, the Indian government has yet again blocked them after an emergency internal review.
According to a report by News18, the government reinstated the block on over 18,000 social media accounts on different platforms after the backlash over the brief period of lifting the ban.  This includes individual accounts of celebrities, influencers, media entities, and entertainment networks operating from Pakistan.
The government sources have been attributed to say that the brief reappearance of these accounts was not the result of any policy change, but a technical glitch or delay in compliance by platforms.
Officials also said that a few handles on X, YouTube or Meta which may still appear accessible to some users, will become inaccessible within a few hours as the issue has been resolved.
On Wednesday, Instagram accounts of actors like Mawra Hocane, Saba Qamar, Ahad Raza Mir, Yumna Zaidi, and Danish Taimoor had briefly become visible to Indian users. YouTube channels of cricketers Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Akhtar, along with entertainment platforms like Hum TV, ARY Digital, and Har Pal Geo, were also visible.
By Thursday morning, they were once again found to be blocked in India as the users searching for them landed to this message: “Account not available in India. This is because we complied with a legal request to restrict this content."
The government had imposed a ban on Pakistani social media accounts issuing an advisory on May 8, 2025, under Part II of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.  It cited concerns regarding India’s sovereignty, national security, public order, and integrity, and warned publishers and digital intermediaries to remain compliant.
The advisory asked OTT platforms, streaming services, and intermediaries to immediately discontinue web series, films, songs, and other media content originating from Pakistan.
These bans stem from escalations of tensions between India and Pakistan following the April 22 terrorist attack on tourists in Pahalgam in which 26 civilians (25 of them Indian) were killed. The attack was claimed by The Resistance Front, a proxy of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), operating from Pakistan.
The All Indian Cine Workers Association (AICWA) had condemned the brief reappearance of Pakistani accounts termed it an “insult" to families of victims of cross-border terrorism.
The association demanded for a complete digital blackout, a ban on future collaborations, and a permanent cultural disconnect with Pakistan, writing a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday.