'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
The ban on BGMI, one of the most popular battle royale mobile games in India, came as an unpleasant shock to numerous players. The game was removed from the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store on 28 July 2022 and was eventually banned.
Similar to PUBG Mobile, BGMI was also banned under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000. Players were able to understand the logic behind the ban on the global version since it had Chinese roots, but the ban on the Indian version is still being questioned as the battle royale game was released a year ago and was targeted specifically towards the Indian audience. Moreover, it was developed and published by KRAFTON, a South-Korean company.
Trending
More about Section 69A of the IT Act which resulted in the ban on BGMI
The sub-section of Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 clearly states the following:
"Where the Central Government or any of its officer specially authorised by it in this behalf is satisfied that it is necessary or expedient so to do, in the interest of sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States or public order or for preventing incitement to the commission of any cognizable offence relating to above, it may subject to the provisions of sub-section (2) for reasons to be recorded in writing, by order, direct any agency of the Government or intermediary to block for access by the public or cause to be blocked for access by the public any information generated, transmitted, received, stored or hosted in any computer resource."
Hence, it can be clearly seen from the above that BGMI was banned to protect the “sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of the State,”. Based on this premise, the government previously banned over 118 Chinese applications (along with PUBG Mobile) back in August 2020.
In February 2022, the Indian government unexpectedly took down Free Fire, another immensely popular mobile game, along with 53 Chinese apps and their clones. Free Fire, despite not being a Chinese game, was subject to the ban. However, its premium version, Free Fire MAX, is still available for players in the country to enjoy.
The ban on BGMI could not have been based solely on the game's roots since KRAFTON is ultimately a South Korean company. However, as of March 2022, Tencent did hold a 13.5% stake in KRAFTON, which could be a reason as to why the government went ahead with the ban.
Back in February 2022, a non-government organization, PRAHAR, also reached out to Indian officials asking them to ban BGMI as it was very similar to PUBG Mobile. The recent incident (in June 2022) of a sixteen-year-old boy killing his mother because she prevented him from playing PUBG could be another possible reason for the ban.
