New Delhi, May 8 – In a significant move citing national security concerns, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has issued an advisory directing all OTT platforms, media streaming services, and intermediaries in India to immediately discontinue content originating from Pakistan.
Referring to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, the advisory highlights that publishers must avoid content that threatens India’s sovereignty, security, or friendly relations with foreign countries. The ministry emphasized that the recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22, 2025, which claimed several Indian lives, had cross-border linkages to Pakistan-based state and non-state actors.
The advisory underscores that content such as films, web series, songs, podcasts, or any other streaming media produced in Pakistan or linked to Pakistani entities must be removed from Indian platforms, whether free or subscription-based. It was noted that this directive has been issued with the approval of the competent authority.
The move is expected to impact streaming libraries across platforms, with compliance being monitored under the provisions of the IT Rules, 2021.
