Plea seeks TikTok ban in Pakistan, says it is peddling vulgarity

After India banned Chinese video-sharing social networking service TikTok, a petition has been filed in Lahore High Court on Tuesday seeking a ban on the popular social media platform in Pakistan owing to its 'vulgar content'.

Advocate Nadeem Sarwar moved the application on behalf of a citizen who is a petitioner in the main petition pending with the court, The Dawn reported.

According to the petition filed by the advocate Sarwar, the video-sharing app has a disastrous effect on the youth of Pakistan as it is not only leading to wastage of time and money but also peddling vulgarity.

He said more than 10 deaths had been reported in the country in incidents relating to the users of the application.

Moreover, he said, the video-sharing application had become a source of spreading pornography for the sake of fame and ratings on social media.

In the petition, the advocate has requested the Lahore high court to issue directives for Pakistan telecommunication authority to impose a permanent ban on the use of TikTok in the Islamic republic.

Earlier this month, Pakistan had banned the popular battle royale game PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds aka PUBG. PUBG had been cited as one of the reasons for cases of suicide in Pakistan. The temporary ban comes days after India clutched down on 59 Chinese apps and banned them.

(With inputs from agencies)