Pakistani, Saudi TV channels banned by Indian authorities in IoK

Several Pakistani and Saudi channels went off air in most parts of the disputed valley on Sunday

MUZAFFARABAD: Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) leaders, on Monday, condemned India’s latest crackdown on Pakistani television channels in Indian-occupied Kashmir (IoK).

Several Pakistani and Saudi channels have gone off air in most parts of the disputed valley on Sunday, a day after the Indian government ordered cable networks to remove 34 channels from their platforms, said a Hindustan Times report.



It claimed that the transmission of the banned channels was against cable TV rules and that such channels have the “potential to encourage or incite violence and create law and order disturbance in the Kashmir Valley.”

Speaker AJK legislative Assembly, Shah Ghulam Qadir, termed the ban as a blot on the face of the so-called Indian democracy.

“The ban on Pakistani news channels in the IoK shows how Indian military establishment wants to treat the people of Kashmir in the era of information technology,” said the speaker.

He said the AJK government would approach the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) to take action against the latest move by  Indian authorities that aims to hide violence against Kashmiris and rights abuses by Indian forces in the troubled Himalayan region since the 1990s.

Opposition leader, Chaudhry Muhammad Yaseen, also criticised the ban and said, Pakistani channels in IoK expose India and its unseen designs to crush the ongoing struggle for freedom by the Kashmiri people.



“Only Pakistani TV channels were exposing Indian forces’ atrocities in the valley. By banning these channels, India only wants to keep the world unaware of the state of Kashmiris who have been fighting for their freedom since 1947,” said Yaseen and added that his party (Pakistan Peoples Party) would raise the issue at a global level.

“Indian army is going to launch a massive crackdown against innocent Kashmiri people in the districts of Pulwama, Shopian and Islamabad (Annatnag). New Delhi has banned the Pakistani channels so that the world cannot witness the fallout of the operation,” said Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader, Abdul Majid Khan.

He appealed to the Pakistan Broadcasters Association (PBA) to approach the world broadcasters associations and groups and raise the issue.

Some of the Pakistani channels banned in IoK are from PTV, Express, ARY, Geo and Hum networks.

Others including Saudi TV channels are Dunya News, TV One, ATV, AbbTakk, Samma TV, Waseb TV, 92News, Madni Channel, Noor TV, Hadi TV, Hidayat, Al Sunnah Al Nabawiyah, Al Quran Al Kareem, Sehar, Karbala TV, Ahli-biat TV, and Message TV etc.

Indian Islamic scholar Dr Zakir Naik’s Peace TV also went off air in Kashmir after the Indian government’s order.



A month-long ban on access to social media websites and messaging apps has already been imposed in Kashmir. IFJ, the world’s largest organisation of journalists, demanded that the ban order be immediately withdrawn and citizens’ rights to information and communication be respected.

Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since the end of British rule in 1947 but both claim the territory in its entirety. Anti-India sentiment runs deep in Kashmir, where most people favour independence or a merger with Pakistan.