India blocks Pakistani celebrity social media accounts again after ‘technical glitch’
Just a day after the Instagram and YouTube accounts of several Pakistani celebrities became visible once again in India, the Indian government has reinstated the digital restrictions, citing a “technical glitch” for their brief reappearance.
By Thursday morning, the Instagram and X profiles of stars such as Mawra Hocane, Ahad Raza Mir, and Saba Qamar were once again inaccessible to Indian users, reported India Today. Those attempting to view their pages were met with the message: “Account not available in India. This is because we complied with a legal request to restrict this content.”
Indian government sources told the outlet that yesterday’s account access was unintentional. “If you can see some accounts on X, YouTube and Meta, they will be inaccessible in a few hours. Some technical glitch led to the unblocking. Rectified now,” the source said.
The incident sparked confusion online, especially after users noticed on July 2 that not just celebrity profiles but YouTube channels like HUM TV, ARY Digital and Har Pal Geo were accessible once again. For many, it seemed like a quiet rollback of the months-long social media ban against Pakistani content.
While no official statement has been issued by India’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the reversal follows months of digital restrictions that were implemented after the Pahalgam attack in May, which India blamed on Pakistan and Pakistan has repeatedly denied.
What followed was a sharp military escalation, including overnight Indian airstrikes on Pakistani territory. Local celebrities, including Hania Aamir and Hocane, issued statements condemning the attacks.
As part of the fallout, several Pakistani social media accounts and entertainment platforms were blocked in India, which made the recent quiet reversal all the more surprising.
The abrupt reappearance — and just as quick disappearance — of these profiles has reignited conversations around censorship, with many users initially criticising the government’s move to allow access to the accounts.
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