Nepal Gives Meta and Other Platforms 7 Days to Register or Face Deactivation

भदौ १२, २०८२ ११:१

Kathmandu: The government of Nepal has decided to bring all social media platforms under mandatory registration. The Cabinet meeting held on August 25 decided to publicly call on all operators to register within seven days in line with the Directive on Regulating the Use of Social Media, 2080 and the order of the Supreme Court.

Minister for Communications and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung said platforms that fail to register or even establish contact within the given timeframe will be gradually deactivated in Nepal. He clarified that platforms completing the registration process will be reactivated based on the instructions of the Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA).

This instruction has been issued to NTA through the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. Platforms that do not comply within the deadline will be disabled in Nepal. Earlier, the government had banned TikTok for failing to follow a similar directive, later reinstating it with conditions.

Minister Gurung, who is also the government spokesperson, said the decision was necessary due to the growing misuse of social media and disregard for state authority. He said the Ministry had repeatedly corresponded and held virtual dialogues with companies such as Meta, the parent firm of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, regarding registration and other assistance. He recalled that Meta representatives had even requested government support in the health and agriculture sectors but disappeared after making only verbal commitments.

“Those who say they do not respect our laws, our constitution, our sovereignty, and argue that they are just commercial organizations doing business must understand, the country is certainly bigger than any organization. Our constitution is bigger,” he said, clarifying the government’s stance.

Minister Gurung said misuse of social media has fueled cybercrime, hate speech, fake news, identity theft, sextortion, extortion, misinformation, disinformation, deepfakes, and attempts to disrupt religious and social harmony, which threaten national sovereignty, unity, and independence. Regulation, he stressed, is essential because such activities go against freedom of expression, democracy, and core values.

He also reminded that the Supreme Court, in the contempt case related to Sidhakura.com, had ordered the government to ensure that all domestic and foreign social media and digital platforms must be registered before operation. The nine-member bench ruled that contact points must be designated and legal action must be taken against non-compliant platforms. The government’s decision is an implementation of this order.

Meanwhile, the government has also registered a bill in parliament to regulate social media. The bill proposes mandatory registration and licensing for all platforms before they can operate in Nepal. Minister Gurung emphasized that companies earning billions of rupees annually from Nepal but refusing to come under Nepal’s laws and tax system will not be granted any exemption under any circumstances.