The Ministry of Interior has presented a report to the Islamabad High Court concerning the closure of social media platform X (Twitter). The Ministry of Interior has argued that the petitioner’s rights have not been violated and therefore the petition should be dismissed.
X’s orders were not followed, and so it was necessary to ban the platform. The petition against the closure of X is unfounded and goes against the law. The FIA Cyber Crime Wing asked X to ban accounts that were spreading propaganda against the Chief Justice, but X officials ignored the request and didn’t respond. Non-cooperation by X authorities justifies regulatory actions against the platform, including temporary closure. X is registered in Pakistan but has not agreed to comply with Pakistani laws.
The government had no other option but to temporarily close X. The Home Ministry report states that the Ministry of Home Affairs issued orders to close X on February 17, 2024, at the request of intelligence agencies. The decision to close X was made to maintain national security and law and order. Social media platforms are being misused to spread extremist ideas and false information. X is being used by nefarious elements to undermine law and order and promote instability. The report clarifies that the shutdown of X is not aimed at curtailing freedom of expression or access to information.
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