ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Attaullah Tarar, said it was necessary to inform the nation about important facts regarding an India-linked digital misinformation network targeting Pakistan.
He was speaking at a press conference in Islamabad on Sunday.
Tarar said security agencies had arrested an individual some time ago and investigations found that the individual's digital services were linked to India and that payments for promoting anti-Pakistan content on social media were being made from India.
Bot farms connected to India
He said authorities gained access to all relevant information during the investigation and that an entire misinformation network was being operated through bot farms connected to India.
The minister said that content targeting Pakistan, its sovereignty, the government, the military, the chief of army staff and state institutions was being amplified online.
Tarar said the arrested individual disclosed during the investigation that most of the material he received related to the Joint Action Committee in Azad Kashmir.
Damaging Kashmir cause
The minister said that the Joint Action Committee sought to damage the Kashmir cause and weaken Kashmir's relationship with Pakistan.
He further said that the committee had no connection with the Kashmir cause or the interests of the people of Kashmir, and questioned why its members did not contest elections if they were sincere about their stated objectives.
Tarar also said that the group martyred Kashmiri police personnel during violent protests and that it was pursuing a politics of violence that created a law-and-order situation in Kashmir.
Irrefutable evidence
The information minister said the government possessed irrefutable evidence linking these activities to India.
He further said that the group attempted to launch a movement through the use of weapons and force.
According to the minister, the objective of these activities was to create instability in Kashmir that would harm the Kashmiri people and weaken their relationship with Pakistan.
Tarar said the people of Kashmir had rejected the politics of violence and had demonstrated that the relationship between Pakistan and Kashmir could neither be broken nor weakened.
Anti-state campaign
The minister also said that an anti-state campaign had been conducted on social media through digital marketing, and that India sought to create a law-and-order situation in Kashmir.
He further said that funding from "the enemy" had been used to conduct a hate-based disinformation campaign against Pakistan, the Pakistan Army, and the country's leadership.
Tarar said evidence of Indian funding for disruptive elements was "before everyone" and said that the disruptive elements of the banned Joint Action Committee were accountable to the entire nation.
The minister said the whole world recognized Pakistan's victory over India in the war and added that, following success on the military front, Pakistan had also achieved significant successes on the diplomatic front.
Anti-Pakistan propaganda
He further said that various social media platforms had been used to spread anti-Pakistan propaganda and claimed that the nexus between the banned Joint Action Committee and India had been proven.
According to Tarar, artificial intelligence was used to support the propaganda campaign by linking old videos to Kashmir.
He said the investigation into the arrested individual was continuing.
The minister said it was the government's responsibility to counter misinformation and described Pakistan as a standard-bearer of peace in the world.
Tarar said the tireless efforts of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir had enhanced Pakistan's honor and prestige internationally.
He concluded by expressing confidence that Pakistan would continue its journey of progress.
