In a quiet but notable shift, access to Pakistani social media accounts and YouTube channels — blocked in India in the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack — has been restored, signaling a reversal of the digital blackout imposed during Operation Sindoor.
Instagram accounts of popular Pakistani celebrities including Saba Qamar, Mawra Hocane, Ahad Raza Mir, Hania Amir, Yumna Zaidi, and Danish Taimoor, which were previously restricted, are now accessible in India.
The move comes without any official notification from the Indian government, raising questions about the current status of the earlier sanctions.
Alongside these social handles, major Pakistani news and entertainment YouTube channels such as Hum TV, ARY Digital, and Har Pal Geo have also re-emerged on Indian digital platforms.
Previously, India had banned 16 Pakistani YouTube channels, including Dawn News, Samaa TV, ARY News, and Geo News, citing the spread of misinformation, communal provocation, and targeted disinformation campaigns against Indian institutions and the armed forces.
The digital ban—announced days after the deadly terrorist attack in Jammu & Kashmir’s Baisaran Valley that claimed the lives of ten Indian soldiers — was part of India’s broader strategic and diplomatic retaliation under Operation Sindoor.
The blocked YouTube channels alone commanded a massive Indian subscriber base of over 63 million before the crackdown.
While access appears to have been restored across platforms, the absence of any formal government statement has left room for speculation on whether the rollback is temporary, technical, or part of a larger diplomatic recalibration.
