Indian Govt. demands YouTube to Remove abusive video links of IAF pilot

Google's YouTube on Thursday removed 11 abusive video links of Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot Mr. Abhinandan Varthaman after the IT Ministry demanded the video streaming platform to do so.

An IT Ministry official told IANS that it had asked YouTube to remove 11 video links related to Wing Commander Varthaman who was captured by the Pakistani army on Wednesday after his MiG plane was shot down and fell across the border during a dogfight.

Videos of the captured Indian Air Force pilot were being released on the internet and netizens shared these videos across social media platforms like Twitter, WhatsApp and Facebook. Hashtags like #BringbackAbhinandan, #SayNoToWar, #MiG21, #F16 and #PakFakeClaim were trending as netizens from both the sides of border turned to social media to express their views.

"We comply with valid legal requests from authorities wherever possible, consistent with our long-standing policy and act quickly to remove such material," a Google spokesperson said on a report.

"Data on government requests to remove content from Google services is updated periodically in our transparency report," the spokesperson added.

Data on government requests to remove content from Google services is regularly updated in our transparency report," the spokesperson added. The captured IAF pilot will be freed on Friday "as a peace gesture", Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan announced on Thursday.

India had earlier demanded the immediate release of the Indian MiG-21 Bison pilot - who shot down a Pakistani F-16 - and ruled out talks on the issue, saying Pakistan cannot use it as a deal.

"India also strongly objected to Pakistan's vulgar display of an injured personnel of the IAF in violation of all norms of International Humanitarian Law and the Geneva Convention.

"It was made clear that Pakistan would be well advised to ensure that no harm comes to the Indian defence personnel in its custody. India also expects his immediate and safe return," the MEA said in a statement.