Pakistani FM stations have stopped broadcasting Indian songs amid a strained relationship between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, following the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir on April 22 that left 26 people dead.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting was quoted as saying in a statement by Pakistan Observer: “This principled decision by PBA upholds the dignity and sovereignty of Pakistan.”
“It shows unity in promoting core national values during these challenging times,” the Ministry said.
India blocks Instagram accounts of Pakistani celebrities
The FM stations stopped broadcasting Indian songs, a day after the Indian government banned Instagram accounts of several Pakistani actors, including A-listers Mahira Khan and Hania Aamir.
The steps were taken amid rising tension between India and Pakistan following the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, the deadliest incident witnessed by the region since the Pulwama attack in 2019.
Earlier, the India government blocked 16 YouTube channels for provocative and communally sensitive content in the wake of the attack that killed 26 tourists, mostly Hindus and all men, on April 22 in the popular tourist spot of Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir.
The banned YouTube channels include Dawn, ARY News, Geo News, platforms by journalists Irshad Bhatti, Asma Shirazi, Umar Cheema and Muneeb Farooq.
As per reports, these YouTube channels have been spreading false information and provocative content related to India.
Pahalgam attack and its repercussions
On April 22, 2025, the terrorists — belonging to The Resistance Front (TRF), which is an offshoot of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) — asked the victims to chant Islamic verses (kalma) and made them pull down their pants to be sure of their their non-Muslim religious identities (read circumcision) before gunning them down before their families, including wives, children and daughters.
The massacre triggered nationwide outrage and escalated India-Pakistan tensions as New Delhi vowed to avenge the killings.
In an immediate response, India suspended the landmark Indus River water-sharing treaty and closed the Attari-Wagah road border, which acts as a lifeline of Indo-Pak trade and people-to-people ties, besides expelling diplomats, downsizing high commissions, and issuing a 48-hour deadline to Pakistani visa holders present in India to leave.
