Pakistani senators are calling for an apology from billionaire Elon Musk, accusing him of spreading "anti-Pakistan propaganda" as he seeks regulatory approval for his Starlink internet service in the country.

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Musk's Starlink has applied for a licence to operate in Pakistan, but clearance is pending. A senate committee on information technology and telecommunications met to discuss the application, but several senators condemned Musk's recent comments on his social media platform X, denouncing them as "anti-Pakistani propaganda".

"It was said that approval should be given on condition of his apology," Committee chair Palwasha Mohammad Zai Khan Khan told AFP.

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"We are not saying it should be a pre-condition but it was a part of the discussion and we can only give our recommendations to the government," she added.

Musk has allegedly claimed in many of his social media posts that Pakistani men were responsible for grooming gangs in England. Earlier an Indian MP Priyanka Chaturvedi in a post on X said, "They aren't ASIAN Grooming Gangs but PAKISTANI grooming gangs. Why should Asians take the fall for one absolute rogue nation?"

Musk responded to the post in agreement writing, "True".

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UK launches fresh probe into grooming gang scandal

The UK government has announced a fresh investigation into the grooming gangs scandal, after a public feud between Musk and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer over the same. Reacting to the announcement, Musk posted on X, "I hope this is a proper investigation." 

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Interior Minister Yvette Cooper announcing the fresh probes said, “As we have seen, effective local inquiries can delve into far more local detail and deliver more locally relevant answers, and change, than a lengthy nationwide inquiry can provide.”

The grooming gang scandal involves sex offences going back decades against British girls by men of mostly South Asian origin in various northern English towns.

(With inputs from agencies)