The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has urged the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to investigate the popular digital game ‘Fortnite’ and the instant messaging platform ‘Discord’ for their alleged involvement in the religious conversion of a minor kid.

The chairperson of the NCPCR, Priyanka Kanoongo, has written a letter to the MeitY secretary, PTI reported.

She wrote, "A caretaker of a mosque in Ghaziabad and a man from Mumbai were involved in the religious conversion of a minor boy through an online gaming platform Fortnite. The minor boy was lured into conversation through the said gaming platform, Fortnite, and then brainwashed into religious conversion over another instant messaging platform, Discord.”

The Commission has requested that an inquiry be initiated against both platforms and has also asked for an action-taken report.

NCPCR sought a probe after a case was registered by the Ghaziabad Police in relation to young and impressionable children being influenced and then converted to Islam through a gaming and instant messaging platform.

The racket was revealed when the father of a juvenile filed a complaint at a police station in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, alleging that his child was performing namaz five times a day, and when confronted by the boy, he became angry and said he would leave the family and reside with the maulvi with whom he was in contact.

According to the officials, these impressionable kids were targeted while playing Fortnite. Then they were allegedly told to recite verses of the Quran in order to win a game, and as planned, they would always win it. This would strengthen the children’s belief in the power of the Quran. Later, these children were allegedly asked to join Discord and shown videos of Zakir Khan and Jaleel Imam.

So far, two people have been arrested in the case, including the maulvi of Jama Masjid in Sector 23, Ghaziabad. According to call records, he was in contact with two children and used to inform them about namaz timings. The other individual is a man named Nanni, also known as Abdur Rehman, who has also been apprehended. He was apparently the key person who spoke to these children.

Fortnite is a popular online game where almost 100 players fight with each other in player-versus-player combat to be the last man standing. The game had become quite popular among the younger generation, especially during the time of the pandemic.

Discord is a free instant messaging application that allows users to share text as well as voice messages, and videos. Fortnite and Discord are often used together as they make multiplayer gaming easier.