Allahabad HC issues notice on plea seeking curbs on minors’ access to Roblox, other gaming platforms

The Allahabad High Court on Wednesday (July 9, 2026) sought a response from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking to restrict minors’ access to online gaming platform Roblox and similar virtual platforms.

The petition, filed by Allahabad High Court lawyer Rani Singh, seeks directions to the Center and other authorities to ban minors from accessing Roblox and similar platforms. It also refers to games such as PUBG, Manhunt, Free Fire MAX, Grand Theft Auto series, Battlefield and Fortnite.

The petition was heard by the Bench of Justices Rajan Roy and Manjive Shukla.

The claim raises concerns about features such as real-time social interaction, user-generated games and avatars, virtual currency transactions, and unrestricted access to chat rooms, claiming that they could expose children to online security risks.

It also calls for the creation of a high-level committee consisting of child psychologists, cyber experts, artificial intelligence moderation experts and law enforcement officials to assess the risks associated with such platforms and recommend urgent measures.

The petition also prayed for conducting mandatory and periodic workshops, seminars and awareness campaigns in schools and educational institutions to sensitize children, teachers and parents about the potential psychological, behavioral and security risks associated with online gaming platforms, including but not limited to Roblox.

It argues that the increasing use of such platforms by minors in India highlights the need for legal regulation, mandatory child safety measures, parental awareness initiatives, age-appropriate content moderation and stronger government oversight to protect the welfare and mental well-being of children.