Instagram accounts of popular Pakistani celebrities including actor Fawad Khan and singers Atif Aslam and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan have been blocked in India, days after an attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam claimed 26 lives, mostly tourists.
Instagram displays a message on their profiles stating: “Account not available in India. This is because we complied with a legal request to restrict this content.”
This follows similar action against other Pakistani artists such as Mahira Khan, Hania Aamir, Ali Zafar, Sanam Saeed, Iqra Aziz, Imran Abbas, Bilal Abbas, and Sajal Aly, whose accounts have also been withheld in India.
The move comes three days after the Indian government banned 16 Pakistani YouTube channels, including major networks like Geo News, ARY News, Samaa TV, and Dawn News, citing the spread of “provocative and communally sensitive content” and “false narratives” against India.
Meanwhile, the Indian release of Fawad Khan’s upcoming film Abir Gulaal, co-starring Vaani Kapoor, has also been shelved. The film was scheduled to hit theatres on May 9, but sources told PTI it will not be allowed to release in India.
On April 22, heavily armed gumnen attacked a group of tourists on the Baisaran grassland in Pahalgam, resulting in 26 deaths.
