India Banning Over a Hundred YouTube Channels for Stirring Violence and Hatred, Minister Announces

India routinely uses internet shutdowns to limit misinformation sharing during a law-and-order crisis. Earlier this month, India’s Supreme Court ordered the government to disclose the standard protocol rules, if available, for ordering or allowing internet shutdowns.

Over 100 Indian YouTube channels, including 10 new ones, were banned after the government found them spreading misinformation and acting against the national interests, Anurag Singh Thakur, the country’s Minister of Information and Broadcasting, said on Monday.

The minister warned of social media accounts and other sources which try to undermine the country’s “national interests”.

“The content blocked by the Ministry was found to be detrimental to the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the state, India’s friendly relations with foreign states, and public order in the country,” Thakur said.

Based on the intelligence inputs, the minister said, the government acted sternly against social media users spreading hatred and violence in society.

“Certain videos depicted erroneous external boundary of India with parts of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh outside Indian territory. Such cartographic misrepresentation was found to be detrimental to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India,” Thakur mentioned.

For the past two years, the Indian government has forced Twitter and other social media giants to suspend hundreds of accounts without providing many details of the violations.

Earlier this year, the Indian government and Twitter were entangled in a war of words after the latter refused to follow the demand.