Baseless hoax of ban on Pakistani wedding tradition spreads online
The post refers to a common wedding where the groom's entourage tosses money over their wedding guests.
Image
Screenshot taken June 13, 2025 of the false Facebook post, with a red X added by AFP
Similar posts with the same false claim surfaced on TikTok and Threads.
Some social media posts have portrayed the tradition as overly extravagant, highlighting cases in which large sums of foreign currency or even mobile phones are showered on crowds (archived link).
But AFP found no credible reports about an official ban on the wedding tradition.
Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari told AFP on June 12 that the government had not prohibited the wedding custom (archived link).
"No such order has been issued to ban giving away of money or throwing of currency notes during wedding ceremonies," Bukhari said. "These are all baseless rumours."
Tauseef Sabih Gondal, director of public relations for Punjab Home Department, told AFP on June 24: "It's a fake news. No such notification has been issued."
Gondal said police have also informed the Home Department that they have not received any instructions on a purported ban, adding that the police have not made any related arrests.
A Punjab Police spokesman confirmed to AFP on June 23 that "no such instructions have been received."
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