ISLAMABAD – The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has restored the services of social media platforms across the country after they remain suspended for four hours.
Earlier today, Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, Whatsapp and Telegram were suspended in light of directions by the Ministry of Interior from 11am to 3pm.
The authority had not cited any reason for temporarily blocking the sites, which have millions of users in the country with some have business accounts.
However, the suspension comes amid Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan’s (TLP) protests across the country that erupted following the arrest of TLP chief Saad Hussain Rizvi.
Three people including two policemen lost their lives while hundreds of cops were injured in the violent protests.
Keeping in view the chaos and violent situation caused by the TLP, the governments has declared the party a proscribed organisation.
TLP banned under Anti-Terrorism Act
The federal government on Thursday formally banned the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), whose supporters staged three days of violent protests across the country this week after the arrest of their leader.
A notification declaring TLP as a proscribed organisation was issued by the Ministry of Interior shortly after the federal cabinet approved a summary to ban the party.
The notification said the federal government “has reasonable grounds to believe that Tehreek Labbaik Pakistan is engaged in terrorism, acted in a manner prejudicial to the peace and security of the country, involved in creating anarchy in the country by intimidating the public, caused grievous bodily harm, hurt and death to the personnel of Law Enforcement Agencies and innocent by-standers, attacked civilians and officials, created wide-scale hurdles, threatened, abused and promoted hatred, vandalised and ransacked public and government properties including vehicles and caused arson, blocked essential health supplies to hospitals, and has used, threatened, coerced, intimidated, and overawed the government [and] the public and created sense of fear and insecurity in the society and the public at large”.
“Therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 11B(1) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, the Federal Government is pleased to list Tehreek Labbaik Pakistan in the First Schedule to the said Act as a proscribed organisation for the purposes of the said Act,” it added.
Read more: https://pakobserver.net/government-bans-tlp-under-anti-terrorism-law/
Read more: https://pakobserver.net/seven-cases-lodged-against-tlp-leaders-workers/
