Nepal Bans X, Instagram & Facebook After Supreme Court Order

After failing to register with the government within the seven-day deadline, Nepal has ordered a ban on 26 social media sites, including Facebook, Instagram and X.

The decision is made according to a Supreme Court directive and a ministerial meeting convened on Thursday which involved Communications and Information Technology Minister Prithvi Subba Gurung, ministry officials, Nepal Telecommunication Authority, telecom operators and internet service providers.

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Officials say restrictions will be imposed throughout the country, and the ministry has already started dispatching letters to the involved companies. The government also had previously issued a warning that non-compliant platforms would be suspended.

Although the registration of Viber, TikTok, Wetalk and Nimbuzz has been completed, and Telegram and Global Diary are being registered, larger platforms like Facebook, Twitter (X), WhatsApp, Reddit, LinkedIn and YouTube have not begun the registration. Authorities added that services would be restored as soon as platforms pass the registration stage and meet the national requirements.

“The Honourable Supreme Court, in a contempt of court case (Case No. 080-8-0012), has issued a directive order in the name of the Government of Nepal to mandatorily list domestic or foreign-origin online and social media platforms with the relevant authorities before operation and to evaluate and monitor unwanted content. In accordance with the decision of the Government of Nepal (Council of Ministers) dated 2082.05.09, for the implementation of the said order, the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology has published a public notice on 2082.05.12, giving a deadline of seven (7) days to list social media platforms as per the 'Directive on Regulating the Use of Social Media, 2080'. All stakeholders are hereby informed that the Nepal Telecommunication Authority has been directed to deactivate social media platforms within Nepal that have not contacted the Ministry for listing within the specified time limit and to reactivate them from the same moment if they are listed,” a notice issued by the ministry reads.

The ministry also blocked all the other large social media and communication sites, such as Messenger, Snapchat, Discord, Pinterest, Signal, Threads, WeChat, Quora, Tumblr, Clubhouse, Rumble, Mi Video, Mi Vike, Line, Imo, Jalo, Sol and Hamro Patro, until they are registered.

On Wednesday, almost 5 years after the writ petitions were filed, the Supreme Court passed its mandamus order, requesting regulation of the advertisements and content broadcast by unlicensed social media sites, OTT apps and internet browsers. Three petitions were heard by a joint bench of Justices Tek Prasad Dhungana and Shanti Singh Thapa who decided to grant a verdict in favour of the petitioners.

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Writs seeking a prohibition on free broadcasts, foreign advertisements included, through social media had been submitted in December 2020 by advocates B.P. Gautam and Anita Bajgain. The same petition was filed by Manoj Gurung, the General Secretary of Nepal Cable Television Federation.

The court aggregated the cases and then passed the mandamus, instructing that unlicensed sites need to cease airing advertisements as well as material without lawful authorization.

On August 19, the parent company of Facebook, Meta, was advised multiple times to invest in Nepal via registration, but Minister of Communications and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung told the National Assembly that it did not feel prepared to comply with Nepal laws and constitution.

As suggested by the ministry through the notice, platforms that operate should be registered with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, identify contact points in Nepal, appoint officials to receive local complaints and designate compliance monitoring officers.

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