Pakistan bans social media platform X over concerns of its misuse

The Pakistan Interior Ministry on Wednesday told the Islamabad High Court (IHC) that the disruption of social media platform 'X' in the country is to address the concerns of its misuse, Dawn reported. Representing the ministry, Interior Secretary Khurram Agha submitted a report on the IHC's orders on journalist Ehtisham Abbasi's petition challenging the ban.

This comes as Pakistan marked two months of the disruption in the services of X.

Dawn reported that access to X has been disrupted since February 17, when former Rawalpindi commissioner Liaquat Chattha accused the chief election commissioner and chief justice of Pakistan of being involved in rigging the February 8 general elections.

The report submitted by the interior ministry said the "failure of Twitter/X to adhere to the lawful directives of the government of Pakistan and address concerns regarding the misuse of its platform necessitated the imposition of a ban".

Detailing the platform's shutdown, the report said the interior ministry had on February 17 "asked for blocking of X (Twitter) immediately till further orders" on the reports of intelligence agencies.

"The decision to impose a ban on Twitter/X in Pakistan was made in the interest of upholding national security, maintaining public order, and preserving the integrity of our nation," it contended, adding that the decision was taken after considering "various confidential reports received from intelligence and security agencies of Pakistan".

It emphasised that "hostile elements operating on Twitter/X have nefarious intentions to create an environment of chaos and instability, with the ultimate goal of destabilising the country and plunging it into some form of anarchy".

"The ban on Twitter serves as a necessary step to disrupt the activities of these elements and prevent them from achieving their destructive objectives," the report said.

It noted that X was neither registered in Pakistan nor had it signed any agreement to abide by local laws. It said that the platform's "failure to establish a legal presence or engage in meaningful cooperation with Pakistani authorities underscores the need for regulatory measures to ensure accountability and adherence to national laws".

"The ban on Twitter/X serves as a necessary step to address this regulatory vacuum and compel the platform to respect the sovereignty and legal jurisdiction of Pakistan," the interior ministry added, Dawn reported.

It claimed that X had "not complied with the requests of Pakistani authorities" after the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA)'s Cyber Crime Wing (CCW) forwarded numerous requests via the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to take "significant action to block accounts involved in a defamatory campaign against the honourable chief justice of Pakistan".

Dawn reported that rights bodies and journalists' organisations have condemned the muzzling of social media, while internet service providers have also lamented losses due to disruptions. The United States had also called on Pakistan to lift restrictions on social media platforms.

On March 20, the interior ministry informed the Sindh High Court (SHC) that the social media platform was blocked in February pending further orders on the reports of intelligence agencies.

The interior ministry's admission came days after Information Minister Attaullah Tarar acknowledged that X was "already banned" when the new government took over the reins from the caretaker set-up, saying there was no official notification for the clampdown.

At the previous hearing, the IHC had rejected a report on digital media outages and summoned the interior secretary along with documentary evidence providing the ground for the disruption of the social media app.

The court had also summoned the interior secretary on April 17, Dawn reported.

"Elections have concluded. Let's finish this now. Let the interior secretary come, then we will see. If the secretary is unable [to give reasons], then I will summon the prime minister," IHC Chief Justice (CJ) Aamer Farooq had warned.

Today, the IHC CJ presided over the hearing while Advocate Amna Ali appeared as the petitioner's counsel. Additional Attorney General (AAG) Munawar Iqbal Duggal was present on the state's behalf.
During the hearing, the AAG informed the court that the interior ministry had filed a report on the matter.

Dawn reported that Justice Farooq then stated that another petition had been filed on the disruption, on which he was issuing notices to the respondents and sought a reply on the new plea.
Subsequently, the hearing was adjourned till May 2.