The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has ordered the shutdown of 35 YouTube channels and two websites that were "coordinatedly" propagating anti-India propaganda and fake news.
I&B Secretary Apurva Chandra told a press conference on Friday that these websites and YouTube channels were run from Pakistan.
He stated that Indian intelligence services were keeping a careful eye on these social media accounts and websites and had reported them to the ministry for appropriate action.
"The Ministry has ordered the blocking of certain Pakistan-based social media accounts and websites," the ministry said later in a statement released under rule 16 of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
According to the ministry, the anti-India and fraudulent content broadcast on those channels included topics such as the Indian armed forces, Jammu and Kashmir, India's foreign ties with other countries, the murder of former CDS Bipin Rawat, and separatist thoughts and beliefs.
The 35 accounts were discovered to be part of four coordinated misinformation networks, according to the ministry, including the Apni Duniya Network, which operates 14 YouTube channels, and the Talha Films Network, which operates 13 YouTube channels.
"You can't accept such phoney news stations as a middleman." There has to be some truth and investigation involved. The only truth in the phoney storey of Bipin Rawat's death, according to the secretary, is that Bipin Rawat's chopper crashed.
This isn't the ministry's first foray into the world of social media." said the secretary.
This isn't the first time the ministry has targeted social media sites that promote incorrect information. Under the IT Rules, the ministry suspended 20 Pakistani YouTube channels and two websites in December 2021.
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