High Court Rules on Petition Demanding TikTok Ban

On Tuesday, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) rejected a petition seeking a ban on Chinese video-sharing app TikTok.

A two-member panel comprising Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Qaiser Rashid Khan and Judge Muhammad Ibrahim Khan heard the petition seeking a ban on uploading illegal material against the principles of Islamic life.  It was jointly picked up by 40 Peshawar residents.

Defendants Sara Ali Khan and Nazish Muzaffar represented the petitioners while the Pakistan Communications Authority (PTA) was represented by eminent lawyer Jahanzeb Mehsud.

During the hearing, PTA's lawyer informed the Primary Healthcare Center that so far millions of videos with unethical content have been removed from Tik Tok, and the accounts on which these videos have been uploaded have been banned.  ۔

PTA said it was in constant contact with the company and initially devised a mechanism to suspend accounts that share unethical content on TikTok and subsequently impose a complete ban on them.

While the court asked the PTA to continue its efforts, it noted that the video sharing app is not the only source of pornography, many political leaders also use abusive language on social media.

The council noted that the government should also pay attention to this issue as various political leaders were using abusive language in their speeches.

The court issued a brief order considering the petition, noting that the petition has served its purpose.

In March last year, a court banned the TikTok service in the country, blocking public access to the video sharing app.  The ban was lifted on April 1, 2021. The court asked the PTA to ensure that no immoral or obscene material was uploaded on it.