The government of Pakistan on Wednesday confirmed that it had ordered a ban on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, in February owing to “national security concerns”. Islamabad informed of the ban to the Sindh High Court following which the court has demanded that the ban be revoked within one week.
The Interior Ministry of Pakistan had reportedly informed the court that the microblogging platform was banned because it “failed to adhere to the lawful directives of the government” and cited a threat to national security.
“The Sindh High Court has given the government one week to withdraw the letter, failing which, on the next date, they will pass appropriate orders,” Moiz Jaaferi, a lawyer challenging the ban reportedly said.
The Sindh HC came down heavily on the government. SHC Chief Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi said, “What are you (Interior Ministry) achieving via shutting down trivial things… The world must laugh at us.
The ban on X was imposed during the Pakistan general elections during which time internet services were also banned in the Islamic country with the interior ministry citing security reasons. This unfolded after a senior Pakistani government official admitted to vote manipulation in the 8th February polls.
As per reports, users in Pakistan have reported problems using X in Pakistan since mid-February but the reason was apparently kept under wraps by Islamabad. The platform has been inaccessible reportedly since 17th February, when Imran Khan party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) called for protests against the admission of vote manipulation.