No Indian movie to be released in Pakistan: information minister

Published February 26, 2019
Fawad Chaudhry says he has "instructed Pemra (Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority) to act against made-in-India advertisements". — DawnNewsTV/File
Fawad Chaudhry says he has "instructed Pemra (Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority) to act against made-in-India advertisements". — DawnNewsTV/File

In the wake of the Indian Air Force's (IAF) violation of the Line of Control (LoC), Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry on Tuesday said the Pakistan Film Exhibitors Association has "boycotted Indian content" and that no Indian movie is to "be released in Pakistan".

The information minister further said that he has "instructed Pemra (Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority) to act against made-in-India advertisements".

Relations between Pakistan and India have been tense since a suicide bombing in occupied Kashmir killed over 40 Indian soldiers, with New Delhi blaming Pakistan of being complicit in the attack — a charge Islamabad has denied vehemently and from the get-go.

The tensions today soared even more after the Indian Air Force's (IAF) violation of the Line of Control (LoC) — a transgression for which Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor, the director general (DG) of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), has warned New Delhi to "wait for our response".

Banning of each other's content in India and Pakistan has precedent. In 2016, Pemra had imposed a complete ban on airing Indian content on local television and FM radio channels.

The decision was largely seen as a tit-for-tat move after similar actions were taken by some channels and the entertainment industry in India against Pakistani content and artists.

In 2017, the Lahore High Court had lifted the Pemra-imposed ban, declaring it null and void as the federal government had no objections regarding the same.

The following year, the Supreme Court — while hearing a case filed by the United Producers Association pertaining to the broadcast of foreign content on Pakistani television channels — had reinstated the ban on the transmission of Indian content on local television channels, setting aside the LHC orders.

Opinion

Editorial

Digital deal
19 Jun, 2026

Digital deal

THINGS have moved rapidly where the Iran-US memorandum of understanding is concerned. While the physical document ...
Failing the public
19 Jun, 2026

Failing the public

WHETHER it is Sindh’s struggle to secure clean drinking water or Balochistan’s difficulty in improving the...
Crushed lives
19 Jun, 2026

Crushed lives

COURTS and commissions have often been up in arms over the health and ecological hazards associated with...
Words that wound
Updated 18 Jun, 2026

Words that wound

Hate speech rarely begins with physical attacks.
‘New urban province’
18 Jun, 2026

‘New urban province’

CONSIDERING the advance state of urban decay that affects Karachi, voices are often raised calling for the megacity,...
Punjab budget: mixed bag
18 Jun, 2026

Punjab budget: mixed bag

PUNJAB’S budget for FY27 is a mix of good and bad political choices, with a cash-strapped centre tightening the...