SC says no to plea for barring kids below 13 from using social media

Plea seeks age verification on social media for children, Supreme Court refuses to examine, advises Parliament to enact law.

The Supreme Court on Friday (April 4, 2025) refused to examine a plea seeking to prohibit children below 13 from using social media, observing it was a policy issue.

A Bench of Justices B. R. Gavai and Augustine George Masih, however, granted a liberty to the petitioner to make a representation to the authority concerned.

The plea referred to the severe physical, mental and psychological impact of social media on young minds and sought a direction to mandate introduction of robust age verification systems, like biometric authentication, to regulate children's access to social media platforms.

"It is a policy matter. You ask Parliament to enact the law," the Bench told the petitioner's counsel.

The Bench went on, "We, therefore, dispose of the petition with liberty to the petitioner to make a representation to the respondent authority."

In case the petitioner made a representation, it would be considered within eight weeks, the court said.

The plea, filed by Zep Foundation, sought directions to the Centre and others to incorporate provisions of mandatory parental controls for children between 13 and 18 years, including real-time monitoring tools, strict age verification and content restrictions in the draft Digital Personal Data Protection Rules.