Former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar’s YouTube channel was found to be inaccessible to users in India on Monday morning. This development comes amid a wider clampdown on Pakistani accounts by the Indian government. While Akhtar’s channel does not feature on the official banned list, fans noticed that his channel could no longer be located via search on YouTube’s website or app, although older videos remained accessible.
Akhtar, a hugely popular figure among cricket fans in India, has been active in recent years through cricket-related discussions across multiple media platforms. However, his is not the only Pakistani channel facing restrictions. Channels belonging to former cricketers Rashid Latif and Basit Ali have similarly become inaccessible, despite not being officially named.
Meanwhile, several major Pakistani news and sports channels have been formally blocked in India. Confirmed blocked channels include Dawn News, Geo News, SAMAA TV, ARY News, BOL News, Raftar, The Pakistan Reference, GNN, Samaa Sports, and others.
The bans follow recommendations from India’s Ministry of Home Affairs after the tragic April 22 incident in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. Officials cited concerns over “provocative and communally sensitive content” and the spread of “misinformation against India, its Army, and security agencies.”
Additionally, India has issued a formal communication to BBC objecting to its language choices while covering the Pahalgam incident, particularly the use of the term “militants” to describe the perpetrators.
As of now, there has been no official statement from Shoaib Akhtar or other affected individuals regarding the restriction.
