India has blocked access to over a dozen Pakistani YouTube channels after they covered the Pahalgam incident, accusing them of sharing “misleading and provocative content” against the Indian government and military, though no concrete examples were provided.
The banned channels, which include major news outlets and independent journalists, together had more than 66 million subscribers. Among them are:
Geo News — 18.1 million subscribers
ARY News — 14.6 million subscribers
Samaa TV — 12.7 million subscribers
Bol News — 7.85 million subscribers
ShoaibAkhtar100mph — 3.81M subscribers
GNN — 3.54 million subscribers
Dawn News TV — 1.96 million subscribers
Suno News HD — 1.36 million subscribers
Irshad Bhatti — 829k subscribers
Raftar — 805k subscribers
Muneeb Farooq — 165k subscribers
Asma Shirazi — 133k subscribers
Umar Cheema Exclusive — 125k subscribers
Pakistan Reference — 288k subscribers
Uzair Cricket — 288k subscribers
Razi Nama — 270k subscribers
Samaa Sports — 73.5k subscribers
The move comes after an attack on April 22 at a tourist spot in Pahalgam, Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), where 26 people were killed.
India, without providing evidence, blamed Pakistan for the attack, an accusation Islamabad firmly denied.
Following the incident, India shut down the Wagah-Attari border, advised citizens against traveling to Pakistan, and suspended the Indus Waters Treaty.
In response, Pakistan’s National Security Committee (NSC) warned that any attempt to block Pakistan’s water would be considered an act of war, and similarly closed the Wagah crossing.
On April 25, Pakistan’s Senate unanimously passed a resolution rejecting India’s accusations, calling them “baseless and politically motivated.”