According to a lawyer, the Sindh High Court (SHC) mandated on Wednesday that the government reinstate social media platform X within one week. The directive stems from over two months of shutdown initiated by the interior ministry.
Formerly known as Twitter, the platform has faced access issues since February 17, coinciding with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) protests against alleged vote manipulation by a government official.
Court documents reveal the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) executed the interior ministry’s closure command. Moiz Jaaferi, the lawyer contesting the ban, stated, “The government has one week to rescind the order or face judicial consequences.”
The interior ministry cited security concerns for the blockage in a report to the Islamabad High Court, noting, “The federal government holds the authority to determine necessary actions for national security.”
The government and PTA initially declined to discuss the disruptions, hinting at intelligence agencies’ involvement.
According to the report, security or intelligence requests justify a service suspension under the PTA Act.
Activists argue the shutdown aims to suppress dissent following the controversial February 8 elections.
“X’s access varies, with brief availability depending on the ISP, driving users to VPNs,” noted Alp Toker from NetBlocks.
Mobile internet was also disrupted for security on election day, exacerbating accusations of electoral fraud.
The extended outage of X triggered alarms over democratic rights, drawing criticism from 28 civil society groups, including Amnesty International.
Moreover, Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar confirmed the unannounced suspension of X, noting its irregular service and reliance on VPNs for access.
