Babar Azam, other Pakistan cricketers' accounts blocked in India

The Indian government has blocked the social media accounts of several Pakistan cricketers, including Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, following the Pahalgam attack.

The Narendra Modi-led Indian government took a wide range of measures against Pakistan after 26 people were killed and several others injured in an alleged attack in Pahalgam on April 22.

Soon after the incident, India blamed the attack on elements from Pakistan without presenting any evidence.

India also announced suspending the Indus Waters Treaty, also known as the Sindh Tas Agreement, and asked Pakistani nationals to leave India within 48 hours.

Days after the attack, the Indian government has blocked the Instagram accounts of several Pakistan cricketers, including Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Afridi.

According to Indian media outlets, users in India cannot access the Instagram accounts of the Pakistan cricketers, with messages stating that the accounts are unavailable in India.

“Account not available in India. This is because we complied with a legal request to restrict this content,” the message popped up when users attempted to access the Instagram handles of Babar Azam and other Pakistan cricketers.

“We received a legal request to restrict this content. We reviewed it against our policies and conducted a legal and human rights assessment. After the review, we restricted access to the content in the location where it goes against local law,” it said.

The move comes soon after the social media accounts of Pakistani actors such as Hania Aamir and Ali Fazal were restricted in India following the Pahalgam attack.

It is worth noting here that Pakistan has shown its willingness for an impartial investigation into the incident.

Speaking on ARY News’ morning show Bakhabar Savera, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s Political Advisor Rana Sanaullah said that Pakistan is open to an impartial investigation into the Pahalgam attack.

“We are ready for a neutral inquiry into the Pahalgam incident,” Rana Sanaullah said, adding that Pakistan would also accept a joint investigation or even a third-party special expert-led probe into the matter.