Pakistan ex-cricketers Shoaib Akhtar, Basit Ali's YouTube channels banned in India

Former Pakistan cricketers Shoaib Akhtar and Basit Ali's Youtube channels have been blocked in India following “an order from the government related to national security or public order” in the wake of Pahalgam terror attack.

The Indian government has withheld several Pakistani channels after the April 22 terror attack in which 26 people, mostly tourists, were gunned down.

The move follows recommendations from the Ministry of Home Affairs in which it said that the Pakistani YouTube channels were “disseminating provocative and communally sensitive content, false and misleading narratives and misinformation against India, its Army and security agencies”.

Dawn News, Irshad Bhatti, SAMAA TV, ARY NEWS, BOL NEWS, Raftar, The Pakistan Reference, Geo News, Samaa Sports, GNN, Uzair Cricket, Umar Cheema Exclusive, Asma Shirazi, Muneeb Farooq, SUNO News and Razi Naama are the other Pakistani channels banned in India.

Following the order, the channels have been withheld by Youtube.

“This content is currently unavailable in this country because of an order from the government related to national security or public order,” stated a Youtube message on logging into the channels.

Akhtar, a former pacer of repute, is a popular figure among Indian fans for his in-depth and often humorous analysis of international cricket issues. Basit, a former Pakistan coach, runs similar content on his channel.