LAHORE, Pakistan, July 5 (Reuters) - Pakistan's largest

province of Punjab is proposing a ban on all social media

platforms for six days due to security concerns during thousands

of religious processions which start next week, its information

minister Uzma Bukhari said on Friday.

The proposal relates to Muharram's Ashura processions, 10

days of mourning by minority Shi'ite Muslims. The event is the

holiest in the Shi'ite calendar and commemorates the 7th century

death of political and religious leader Hussain Ibn Ali.

Hussain was grandson of the Muslims' last Prophet Muhammad.

"It is a recommendation, and no decision has so far been

taken," Bukhari told Reuters, adding that the government had

received reports of some sectarian issues on social media which

he said could "put the country on fire".

The measure is aimed at protecting the minority from

sectarian violence, the provincial government wrote in a letter

to Pakistan's interior ministry on Thursday.

The letter, which was seen by Reuters, said social media

platforms such as "Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, YouTube,

Twitter and Tiktok be suspended across the province of Punjab

... in order to control hate material/misinformation".

The interior ministry did not respond to a Reuters request

for comment.

Pakistan has blocked access to X since its February

election, which the interior ministry said in a court submission

in April was due to national security concerns.

Civil and rights groups have criticised the ban as an attack

on freedom of speech and access to information in a highly

polarised country amid allegations of election fraud.

Jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan's party has said

that the suspension of cell phone service on the election day

followed by the X ban was an attempt to hurt his supporters, who

rely heavily on social media.

A court is due to rule on the last of Khan's many

convictions on July 12, the first day of the latest proposed

ban. It was not clear whether the proposal is related to any

likely threat of protests by his supporters.

(Writing by Asif Shahzad; Editing by Alexander Smith)