Instagram accounts of more Pakistani celebrities including Fawad Khan, Atif Aslam and Babar Azam blocked in India

The Indian government on Friday blocked the Instagram accounts of several Pakistani celebrities, including that of singer Atif Aslam, cricketers Shahid Afridi and Babar Azam, and actor Fawad Khan.

This comes a day after Hania Aamir and Mahira Khan Instagram accounts were blocked. Other Pakistani celebrities whose Instagram accounts have been blocked in India are Ali Zafar, Sanam Saeed, Bilal Abbas, Momina Mustehsan, Iqra Aziz, Imran Abbas, and Sajal Aly.

The accounts have been blocked after the Indian government banned 16 Pakistani YouTube channels a few days ago. These included prominent media outlets like Dawn News, Samaa TV, ARY News, and Geo News. The channels were banned for airing provocative and communally sensitive content, false and misleading narratives and misinformation against India.


The Indian government has initiated the digital clampdown following the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam, which killed 26 civilians. Additionally, India has taken a string of diplomatic actions on Pakistan. On April 23, India downgraded diplomatic ties with Pakistan and announced a series of measures including expulsion of Pakistani military attaches, suspension of the over six-decade-old Indus Water Treaty and immediate shutting down of the Attari land-transit post.

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said the cross-border linkages to the Pahalgam attack was "brought out" in a briefing to the CCS following which it decided to take the measures against Pakistan. The new retaliatory actions shut down the few existing diplomatic mechanisms between the two sides taking bilateral relations to another new low.

A day later, Pakistan retaliated by suspending the 1972 Simla Agreement, blocked its airspace for Indian airlines, closed the Wagah border crossing, paused all trade with India, and said any attempt to divert water meant for Pakistan under the Indus Water Treaty will be considered an Act of War.

The announcements were made after a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to formulate the country's response to India's move to suspend the Indus Water Treaty and downgrade diplomatic ties after the Pahalgam terror attack.