The Peshawar High Court convened on Thursday to address a plea regarding the proliferation of insulting and obscene content on the popular social media platform TikTok and urging for stricter regulation or even a ban on its operations within Pakistan.
Presided over by Chief Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Justice Sahibzada Asadullah, the court session saw impassioned arguments from legal representatives and judiciary alike. The petitioner's lawyer argued that TikTok should be banned due to its alleged promotion of blasphemous and culturally inappropriate material.
The PEMRA counsel told the court that TikTok was not regulated by the authority, but was under the PTA's jurisdiction.
The petitioner's lawyer sought a stay order on blasphemous content to prevent its publication. They emphasized the need to uphold societal values and protect against content that could potentially insult religious sentiments or undermine cultural norms.
Chief Justice Ibrahim expressed concerns over the presence of content on TikTok that goes against Pakistani societal values and traditions. "Insulting and obscene content should not be on TikTok," he remarked.
He underscored the judiciary's responsibility to ensure that platforms like TikTok do not become avenues for spreading offensive material.
During the proceedings, Justice Sahibzada Asadullah questioned the petitioner if he was upset over all the content on the social media platform. The counsel replied that blasphemous content should be banned, adding that Pakistan was among the two countries that used TikTok the most.
The court issued a notice to the PTA to provide a detailed response on the matter, scheduling further deliberations for June 26.
