On Monday, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has instructed the authorities to raise the issue of the TikTok ban in the Federal Cabinet. “What happened to a previous court order regarding taking advice from the federal cabinet in this regard,” the IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah asked the PTA lawyer.
99% Pakistanis Are Still Using TikTok Despite the Ban
The IHC further questioned whether the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority had sought a policy from the government according to its directives. “Is TikTok currently open or closed nationwide?” IHC inquired. The PTA attorney responded that nearly 99% of the application was opened using the proxy. The court then inquired why the PTA wanted to cut off Pakistan from the rest of the world.
No Banning Decision was Taken by the Federal Cabinet
“Why social media apps are not being banned in the outside world, though the law is strict there? What does PTA want from this [ban]? “If you can’t beat the technology then why are you doing this?” The IHC questioned the PTA lawyer why the telecommunication authority had not taken directions from the federal cabinet despite its orders concerning the policy on the TikTok ban.
Read more: Punjab Bans Entry of TikTokers into Public Parks, After the Minar-e-Pakistan Incident
When questioned if the cabinet has ordered a ban on TikTok, the lawyer stated that a meeting in this regard was hosted on policy issues, however, no instructions of imposing a ban have been declared. In response to this, IHC mentioned that it seems that in the absence of rules, the PTA has unlawfully banned the Chinese video-sharing application in Pakistan. The IHC warned that it could summon the PTA chairman if court orders are not executed properly.
Banning Social Media Platforms Is Not the Solution
“The PTA should devise ways to deal with the technological challenges rather than banning the platforms,” stated Islamabad High Court and added that the PTA had stated in its testimony previously that only one percent of people are abusing the application. To this, the PTA advocate told that they are in talks with TikTok officials and soon ban on the platform would be lifted. The court later adjourned the proceedings for September 20.
Source: Pro Pakistani
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