NEW DELHI, 25 April 2022: India has banned 10 Indian, six Pakistani YouTube channels and one Facebook account. Using emergency powers under the IT Rules, 2021, the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, 2021, in two separate orders on 22.04.2022, issued directions for blocking 16 YouTube-based news channels and one Facebook account.
India’s Ministry of Information & Broadcasting posted a media release on PIB, New Delhi, which says, ” The blocked social media accounts include six Pakistan based and ten India based YouTube news channels, having a cumulative viewership of over 68 crores. It was observed that these channels were used to spread fake news over social media on matters related to national security, India’s foreign relations, communal harmony in the country, and public order. None of the digital news publishers had furnished information to the Ministry as required under rule 18 of the IT Rules, 2021.”
The “YouTube channels were spreading false, unverified information to create panic, incite communal disharmony and disturb public order in India, ” says the PIB media release. Earlier, this month India had banned 78 YouTube news channels, including 18 from India, on various charges.
A list of banned channels can be viewed at — pib.gov.in
