Polymarket's X account withheld in India as online money game crackdown reaches social media
· Yono Games News Desk
India’s crackdown on online money games has moved from websites to social media. From 22 October 2026, people in India who try to open Polymarket’s main account on X see the platform’s standard notice that the account is “withheld in response to a legal demand”. The account and its posts can still be seen outside India.
Polymarket describes itself as the world’s largest prediction market. Users trade shares on the outcomes of real-world events such as elections, sports, economic data and pop culture. Mint has reported that the platform drew heavy trading around Indian state elections and cricket.
Who ordered it, and on what grounds?
That is still unclear. MediaNama reported that neither MeitY nor Polymarket has publicly explained the legal basis for the order, and that the specific order and the authority that issued it have not been disclosed. X has complied with Indian orders under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 before, and that section allows authorities to block entire profiles. MediaNama said the latest action looks consistent with that practice.
Mint also said the exact scope and legal grounds of the order remain unclear. In practice, Indian users have lost access to Polymarket’s announcements and market updates on X. That extends the earlier website restrictions to the company’s public channel.
How the restrictions built up in 2026
The restrictions come from the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, which received presidential assent in August 2025. MeitY notified the implementing rules on 22 April 2026, and they took effect on 1 May. The law bans online money games, meaning games where people stake or deposit money expecting a financial return. The ban applies whether the outcome depends on skill or on chance. Indian authorities treat prediction markets as prohibited.
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| August 2025 | Online gaming Act receives presidential assent |
| 22 April 2026 | MeitY notifies the Online Gaming Rules |
| 25 April 2026 | MeitY advisory names Polymarket among platforms already blocked under Section 69A |
| 1 May 2026 | The rules come into force |
| 21–22 May 2026 | Internet service providers apply DNS-level blocks on the Polymarket website |
| 22 October 2026 | Polymarket’s X account first observed as withheld in India |
The April advisory also warned VPN providers and intermediaries not to help users reach blocked platforms. It noted that some users were converting rupees into stablecoins such as USDC so they could keep using overseas services. MediaNama reported that on major Indian networks, DNS queries for the site returned sinkhole addresses after the May blocks.
The wider squeeze on money games
Polymarket has not added India to its own list of geo-restricted countries, so enforcement depends mostly on Indian intermediaries. That is where the pressure is landing. According to MediaNama, the Online Gaming Authority of India has told app stores, payment providers and telecom operators to disable money games and related promotions. MeitY has stressed that intermediaries that facilitate prohibited services risk losing their safe-harbour protection under Section 79 of the IT Act.
Other operators have already pulled back. Kalshi now lists India as a restricted jurisdiction, and most domestic opinion-trading platforms have removed their real-money offerings. MediaNama noted that some activity has reportedly moved to crypto-settled venues. Getting money into crypto in India is still expensive: gains are taxed at 30% and 1% TDS is deducted on transfers. Courts have not yet decided whether decentralised prediction markets should be treated differently from traditional betting. For now, administrative practice treats them as prohibited.
What this means for Yono Games players
The message from this case is simple. If a platform takes stakes on outcomes, enforcement now reaches its website, its app-store listings, its payment routes and even its social media accounts. Yono Games readers who see links or adverts for blocked prediction or betting platforms on Telegram, WhatsApp or other social media should treat them with caution.
- Do not use VPNs or crypto workarounds to reach blocked platforms. MeitY has warned intermediaries about exactly this, and your money has little protection if something goes wrong.
- Keep Google Play Protect on, and be wary of APK files shared through social media links.
- Never share an OTP or your UPI PIN, and never send money to a person who promises to “unlock” access to a blocked site.
- Check the law where you live, and remember that online money games are prohibited nationally under the 2025 Act.
- Play only if you are 18+. Treat any game as entertainment, not as a way to earn money.
More player news on Yono Games: bookmark this Polymarket’s X Account Withheld in India story and see the latest Yono Games news.