Shillong, May 8: In a move citing national security concerns, the Government of India has issued a formal advisory directing all OTT platforms, media streaming services, and digital intermediaries to immediately cease hosting or transmitting any content originating from Pakistan.
The advisory, issued under the framework of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, particularly invokes Part II of the IT Rules, which outlines a Code of Ethics for publishers of online curated content. The Code mandates that platforms exercise “due caution and discretion” when dealing with content that may affect India’s sovereignty, security, public order, or diplomatic relations.
According to the advisory, content that is detrimental to India’s friendly ties with foreign countries, incites violence, or disturbs public order must be handled with strict oversight. The government highlighted rule 3(1)(b) of the IT Rules, which obligates digital intermediaries to ensure their platforms do not carry information that threatens the “unity, integrity, defence, security or sovereignty of India, or public order.”
The Ministry’s action comes in the aftermath of the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which resulted in the death of several Indian nationals and one Nepali citizen. Indian authorities have attributed the attack to Pakistan-based State and non-state actors, reinforcing long-standing concerns about cross-border terrorism.
“In the interest of national security, all OTT platforms, media streaming platforms and intermediaries operating in India are advised to discontinue the web-series, films, songs, podcasts and other streaming media content… having its origins in Pakistan with immediate effect,” the advisory states.
The directive has been issued with the approval of the competent authority in the Ministry and is expected to impact a range of digital content offerings, both subscription-based and free-to-access.
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