A court in Islamabad has ordered the blocking of 27 stations suspected of “disseminating fake and misleading information against state institutions,” according to an order issued on Tuesday.

Judicial Magistrate Abbas Shah issued a two-page written ruling responding to a petition submitted by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA). The court judged the agency’s evidence to be sufficient and determined that the case required legal action under current statutes.

On June 2, the NCCIA initiated an investigation into the situation, with the relevant authority’s consent.

On June 24, Waseem Khan of the NCCIA’s Cyber Crime Reporting Centre said the court that the agency was investigating various YouTube channels for posting “false, defamatory, and fake” information against state organizations and their officers.

He informed the court that the information being shared was “likely to cause fear, panic, disorder, or unrest in society” and contained “highly intimidating, provocative, and derogatory” statements. He further claimed that the channels were intended to incite the public and armed forces members, as well as to foster “ill-will among pillars of the state.”

The inquiry indicated that such content was distributed to the public through 27 outlets.

The government then sought authorization to restrict these YouTube channels under Section 37 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, seeking that a legal order be given to Google LLC, YouTube’s parent company, for their deletion and blockage.

After evaluating the request and related evidence, the court determined that the facts stated and evidence produced by the investigation officer constituted “offences punishable” under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act and Pakistan’s Penal Laws.

The formal order also instructed the Officer-in-Charge of YouTube to ban or deactivate the named channels.
The court has restricted channels linked with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), as well as those owned by journalists Moeed Pirzada, Asad Ali Toor, Ahmed Noorani, Matiullah Jan, Imran Riaz Khan, Sabir Shakir, and Aftab Iqbal.

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