In the wake of the Pahalgam attack that killed 26 people, Instagram accounts of top Pakistani cricketers Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have been blocked in India, with users seeing the message: “Account not available in India. This is because we complied with a legal request to restrict this content.”
The move is part of a broader crackdown. Olympic medalist Arshad Nadeem, fast bowlers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf, and legendary pacer Shoaib Akhtar have also had their Instagram or YouTube pages blocked. However, Instagram profiles of Shahid Afridi, Wasim Akram, and Waqar Younis remain accessible in India.
This comes after the Indian government banned 16 Pakistani YouTube channels last week, citing their role in spreading provocative and misleading narratives against India.
PSL Not Streamed in India After Pahalgam Attack
The blocking also affects the Pakistan Super League (PSL), which is no longer being telecast or streamed in India. Broadcasters Sony TV and FanCode have pulled the plug following the Pahalgam incident.
Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, two of Pakistan’s biggest cricket stars, are currently playing in the PSL’s 10th season. However, both are struggling—Babar has scored just 117 runs in 6 matches, and Rizwan’s team, Multan Sultans, is at the bottom of the table.
On April 22, heavily armed gunmen targeted tourists at the Baisaran meadow near Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir, leaving 26 people dead. The attack has triggered diplomatic and digital fallout between India and Pakistan.
