Did PM Modi drop a big hint with praise for Australia's social media ban?

Published 10 July 2026 · politics

Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems to have dropped the biggest hint yet of the government considering a social media ban for young teens. Speaking at

Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems to have dropped the biggest hint yet of the government considering a social media ban for young teens. Speaking at the Australia-India leaders' summit on Thursday, PM Modi praised the country's decision to restrict social media access for children under 16. The Prime Minister also said that India was "taking lessons" from it. The remarks, coming from the Prime Minister himself, are the clearest indication that the government was looking at bringing similar social media restrictions for children in the future. Australia became the first country last year to ban those aged under 16 from using social media platforms like TikTok, X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat. The aim is to protect children from potentially harmful content. Read Full Story Praising the move by the Anthony Albanese administration, PM Modi said, "The way you are bringing changes in laws related to IT (information technology) and social media, and working to protect society, is highly inspiring for the world." "We are learning a lot from your efforts, and taking many lessons from them," the Prime Minister further said. INDIA CONSIDERING SOCIAL MEDIA BAN? The timing of PM Modi's remarks is crucial. Just last week, the government directed Instagram to remove promoting child sexual abuse.

In June, a Home Ministry report revealed that messaging app Telegram was being used extensively to share child sexual abuse material. Earlier this year, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the government was already in talks with social media companies for age-based restrictions. Since then, IT Ministry officials have held at least three meetings with social media platforms and other stakeholders, according to a report in The Economic Times. Several states have already moved to restrict social media access for children. In March, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh became the first two states to announce a social media ban for children. While Karnataka announced it for those under 16, and Andhra Pradesh for those under 13. Goa is also exploring a similar move. However, none of the states has come out with any law or enforcement mechanism. The hurdle is constitutional, as information technology falls under the Union list. It simply means Parliament holds the authority over it, not state assemblies. Moreover, there are structural problems as well. A restriction in Karnataka will cease to exist if a child shifts to another state that has not banned social media. CHALLENGES ON IMPLEMENTING SOCIAL MEDIA BAN Now, implementing such a social media ban in India, the world's second-largest smartphone market with over 1.16 billion connections, has its own set of challenges.