Talks on to lift ban on TikTok, Pakistani court told

Islamabad: Pakistan’s Islamabad High Court (IHC) has been told that Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and TikTok officials were engaged in talks to lift a ban on the video-sharing app.

During a hearing of a case pertaining to a ban on TikTok headed by IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah, the court directed the PTA authorities to raise the issue of the ban on the video-sharing application 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 asked the PTA lawyer.

When asked if the platform is operating in Pakistan despite a ban, the counsel representing the PTA said that currently 99 percent people are operating it through a proxy.

When asked if the cabinet has directed for a ban on TikTok, the lawyer said that a meeting in this regard was held on policy issues, however, no directives of imposing a ban have been issued.

To this, the court remarked that it appears that in the absence of rules, the PTA has illegally banned the video-sharing application in the country. The IHC warned that it could summon the PTA chairman if court orders are not implemented properly.

“The PTA should devise ways to deal with the technological challenges rather than banning the platforms,” the top Islamabad court remarked and added that the authority had said in its affidavit previously that only one percent of people are misusing the application.

The PTA lawyer told the court that they were in talks with TikTok authorities and soon ban on the platform would be lifted. The court adjourned the proceedings for September 20.