The Nepali government on Thursday banned 26 social media platforms, including Facebook, X and YouTube, citing their failure to register with the country’s Ministry of Communication and Information Technology before the deadline, The Kathmandu Post reported.
In a notice, the ministry said that it had ordered the Nepal Telecommunication Authority to “make inactive all non-registered social media sites until they are registered”, The Hindu reported.
The action followed an order issued by the Supreme Court in August, which instructed the government to ensure that all domestic and foreign platforms were registered before operating in the country, The Kathmandu Post reported.
The court said it had issued the direction so that unwanted content could be monitored.
On Thursday, the ministry said that the platforms had been given a period of seven days starting August 28 to apply for listing, the newspaper reported. The period expired on Wednesday night.
Several global firms, including Meta, Alphabet, X, Reddit and LinkedIn, failed to submit their applications, the notice added. Meta operates platforms such as WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook. Alphabet operates YouTube.
Some other platforms such as TikTok, Viber, Witk, Nimbuzz and Popo Live had already been listed, the notice said, adding that Telegram and Global Diary had applied to be registered and were awaiting approval.
“Except for the five listed platforms and two in the process, all others will be deactivated inside Nepal,” The Kathmandu Post quoted the ministry Spokesperson Gajendra Kumar Thakur as saying. “Any platform completing registration will be reopened the same day.”
The government had asked the platforms to register four times previously.
The banning of the platforms has led to criticism of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) government led by Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.
The Opposition Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) described the ban as “objectionable” and warned that shutting down social media could throw the country into disarray, The Kathmandu Post reported.
Raj Pandey, chief whip of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre), accused the government of failing to prepare a workable environment for registration of the platforms and of curbing freedom of expression.
“Regulation is necessary, but the government must first identify what the problem is and where it lies,” the newspaper quoted Pandey as telling reporters. “If social media is shut down, the country will become chaotic. We oppose this decision.”
Nepal has banned social media platforms earlier too.
In November 2023, the Pushpa Kamal Dahal government at the time had blocked TikTok, The Hindu reported. However, the ban was lifted in August 2024 after the platform agreed to register in Nepal.
Since taking office about 14 months ago, Oli’s government has also faced increasing criticism for adopting an increasingly punitive stance toward online critics, according to the newspaper.
Earlier this year, Kathmandu moved to enact a new law to regulate social media, which was met with opposition. Experts warned that the government was attempting to control all online activity under the guise of regulation.
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