Peshawar High Court seeks progress report from Pak authorities on blocking of TikTok videos

Islamabad [Pakistan], March 17 (ANI): The Peshawar High Court on Wednesday directed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to produce a progress report on the steps taken for blocking "unlawful contents", including "immoral material", on TikTok, a Chinese short-video app.
A bench consisting of Chief Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan and Justice Abdul Shakoor observed that the country had its own "social values, so the court won't allow any material on TikTok that would corrupt the minds of the young generation," Dawn newspaper reported.
Despite the "immoral content", the bench said that it couldn't "cut off the country from rest of the world, so TikTok couldn't be banned permanently as it was an international mobile app".
The court was hearing a petition jointly filed by 40 residents of Peshawar, who sought orders for the respondents, including PTA and Federal Investigation Agency, to ban TikTok to the extent of the violation of the constitutional provisions, which don't allow acts contrary to Islamic code of life in the country, Dawn newspaper reproted.
In March last year, the court had banned the Tik Tok service in the country leading to the blocking of people's access to the video-sharing app.
The first time TikTok was banned in Pakistan was in October 2020, However, the ban was lifted 10-day later after the company assured that it would block accounts "spreading obscenity". (ANI)