Pakistan Launches ‘Say No to India’ Campaign, Bans All Cultural Exchange

Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting launched a “Say No to India” campaign as the government bans all cultural exchanges with its neighbor amid the continuing escalation of the Kashmir crisis.

News ID: 446497

Date: 11 August 2019 - 10:49

RNA - The ban encompasses all kinds of joint ventures between the Indian and Pakistani entertainment industries, PTI reported.

Pakistan’s Electronic Media Regulatory Authority will also clamp down on the sale of Indian direct-to-home TV satellites.

The moves come after India revoked Article 370, which granted special status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan termed the Indian action as “unilateral and illegal”.

Islamabad has also banned the screening of Indian films in the country’s cinemas.

“No Indian cinema will be screened in any Pakistani cinema. Drama, films, and Indian content of this kind will be completely banned in Pakistan,” an adviser to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Thursday.

It’s not the first time Pakistan has banned Indian films as a means of registering its annoyance with its nuclear neighbor. Islamabad has previously prohibited Indian films for containing politically objectionable content and for their portrayal of Muslims.

An Indian film union has urged Bollywood to blacklist all Pakistani artists after Islamabad announced that its country’s cinemas would no longer screen Indian movies, in a feud prompted by the ongoing Kashmir crisis. The All Indian Cine Workers Association (AICWA) called on the Indian film industry to “put a complete stop to any association with Pakistani artists, musicians and diplomats".

Pakistan’s Federal Cabinet has approved the cutting of bilateral trade with India, as well as ending rail service between the neighboring nations.

Islamabad announced earlier this week that it would downgrade diplomatic relations with New Delhi and suspend trade with its neighbour. Then, on Thursday, Pakistan stated it would halt the Samjhauta Express, a rail line linking the two countries. The cabinet signed off on the measures on Friday.

New Delhi has announced that Pakistan must “accept reality” and stop poking its nose in the internal matters of other nations.

A spokesman for India’s Ministry of External Affairs condemned Islamabad after it suspended the last rail line linking the two countries.

According to Fars News Agancy, Raveesh Kumar said that Pakistan must “accept reality” and stop taking “unilateral actions”, adding that “this has been done without consulting us. We’ve urged them to reconsider their decision. Our sense is that whatever is being done by Pakistan is to present an alarming picture of bilateral relationship”.

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi has insisted that the move would help stamp out “the separatism, corruption and terrorism” plaguing the disputed territory.

Imran Khan has urged the international community to play its role in addressing the situation in Indian-administered Kashmir and help avert, what he called “genocide in Kashmir”.

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