Instagram accounts of Babar, Rizwan and many other Pakistani cricketers blocked in India
New Delhi, May 2 (PTI): India on Friday blocked Instagram accounts of leading current and former Pakistani cricketers including Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Wasim Akram, intensifying its digital crackdown on influential personalities across the border in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack.
The list of restricted accounts also includes Test captain Shan Masood, pacers Hasan Ali and Naseem Shah, batter Imam-ul-Haq, all rounder Shadab Khan and former stars Shoaib Akhtar and Shahid Afridi.
Additionally, the account of Pakistan's former Prime Minister and cricket captain Imran Khan is also now inaccessible in India.
Users attempting to access their Instagram page from India are met with the message: "Account not available in India. This is because we complied with a legal request to restrict this content."
"We received a legal request to restrict this content. We reviewed it against our policies and conducted a legal and human rights assessment. After the review, we restricted access to the content in the location where it goes against local law,"a added the note from Instagram.
However, the accounts of World Cup-winning captain Waqar Younis and former skipper Misbah-ul-Haq have not been withheld yet.
Pakistan's Olympic gold-winning javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem's Instagram account was blocked on Wednesday.
These restrictions come in the wake of the April 22 terror attack near the popular tourist destination of Pahalgam in south Kashmir, where 26 people -- mostly tourists -- were killed and several others injured in a targeted shooting.
In the wake of the deadly attack, the Indian government has taken steps to block access to Pakistani social media accounts, citing national security concerns.
Earlier this week, several Pakistani YouTube channels were also restricted in India for "disseminating provocative and communally sensitive content, false and misleading narratives and misinformation against India, its Army and security agencies".
That ban impacted the likes of Shoaib Akhtar, Basit Ali, and Shahid Afridi.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
