India bans 16 Pakistani YouTube channels spreading misinformation after Pahalgam attack

The banned platforms include YouTube channels of prominent news outlets such as Geo News, Dawn, Raftar, Bol News, ARY News, Samaa TV.

Updated on: Apr 28, 2025, 14:07:40 IST

By Neeraj Chauhan

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India has banned 16 YouTube channels of Pakistan that were spreading communally sensitive information after the Pahalgam attack, according to government sources. The decision was made on the recommendations of the home ministry just days after 26 people were killed in a terror attack in Jammu and Kasmir's Pahalgam.

Security personnel inspect the site in the aftermath of an attack as food stall chairs lie empty in Pahalgam. (AFP)

Track latest updates on Pahalgam attack here

The banned platforms include YouTube channels of prominent news outlets such as Geo News, Dawn, Raftar, Bol News, ARY News, Samaa TV, Suno News. Additionally, YouTube channels of well-known journalists, including Muneeb Farooq, Umar Cheema, Asma Shirazi, and Irshad Bhatti, have been blocked. Other banned handles include Uzair Cricket, The Pakistan Reference, Razi Naama, and Samaa Sports.

The channels had a total of 63 million subscribers.

Full list of Pakistani YouTube channels India has banned after the Pahalgam attack.

The YouTube channels in question have been spreading content deemed provocative and communally sensitive, as well as false and misleading narratives and misinformation targeting India, its Army, and security agencies, according to government sources. This action comes amid strained relations between the neighbors following the Pahalgam tragedy, where terrorists killed 26 people in a brutal attack.

The government has also written a formal letter to the BBC, conveying India's strong sentiments on its Pahalgam reportage and terming terrorists 'militants', officials said on Monday.

In a communication to Jackie Martin, BBC's India Head, the Ministry of External Affairs has conveyed the country's strong sentiments regarding their reporting on the terror attack.

"A formal letter has been sent to the BBC on terming terrorists as militants. The External Publicity Division of the MEA will be monitoring the reporting of the BBC," the official said.

Pahalgam terror attack

The terror attack occurred in Baisaran meadow, near the popular tourist town of Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir. It was one of the deadliest attacks in the region since the 2019 Pulwama strike, which claimed the lives of 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawans.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) teams, stationed at the Pahalgam terror attack site since April 23, have intensified the search for evidence following the incident. The teams, led by an IG, DIG, and SP from the anti-terror agency, are questioning eyewitnesses who observed the April 22 attack.

The Indian Army is also on high alert, launching several search operations to neutralise the terrorists following the attack in Pahalgam. The incident has sparked nationwide outrage, with widespread protests erupting across the country, demanding stricter action against Pakistan over the Pahalgam attack.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Chauhan
Neeraj Chauhan is a senior journalist with Hindustan Times and an investigative reporter specialising in national security, terrorism, organised crime, narcotics, corruption, financial crime and complex investigations. With over 21 years of experience across Hindustan Times, The Times of India, The Indian Express and The Pioneer, he has built deep expertise in India’s internal security and law-enforcement landscape. Neeraj has extensively covered India’s principal investigative, intelligence and security agencies, including the NIA, CBI, ED, IB, R&AW, MHA and other central security forces. His work has included deeply reported investigations into terrorism, terror financing, cross-border crime, narcotics trafficking, cybercrime, financial fraud and political and corporate corruption. He has reported on some of the most significant terror attacks and security developments in India over the past two decades, including the Delhi serial blasts, the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the 2019 Pulwama terror attack and the recent Pahalgam attack. His reporting has also chronicled the rise and decline of the Indian Mujahideen, the activities and subsequent crackdown on the Popular Front of India (PFI), Islamist extremist networks, the conflict in Jammu and Kashmir, insurgencies in the Northeast and Maoist violence. Some of Neeraj’s major breaking stories are in Aryan Khan drug case, Sushant Singh Rajput suicide, interception of a 3,000-kg Afghan heroin consignment worth about ₹21,000 crore at Mundra port, Sri Lanka easter bombings, Aarushi-Hemraj murders in Noida, 2G scam, coal block allocation scam, AgustWestland VVIP chopper deal and major bank frauds and extradition cases involving Mehul Choksi, Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya. His reporting is marked by an ability to cultivate sources, analyse confidential and complex documents, and follow investigations over several years—from the initial breakthrough to chargesheets, trials and international legal proceedings. He specialises in making complicated security and investigative developments accessible while examining their wider implications for governance and public policy. A Chevening South Asia Journalism Programme Fellow at the University of Westminster, Neeraj also spent time at the Financial Times as part of the fellowship. He was also a Robert Bosch Media Ambassadors India-Germany Fellow, studying at the University of Tübingen and working with Der Tagesspiegel in Berlin. He has previously taught investigative journalism and crime reporting as a guest faculty member at the Times School of Journalism. Over more than two decades, Neeraj has established himself as an authoritative voice on India’s national security and investigative landscape, with his reporting closely followed by officials, investigators, lawyers, policymakers and readers seeking insight into some of the country’s most complex and consequential developments.Read More

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