Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) Said to Be Blocked in India Using Section 69A of IT Act, Industry Reacts
The government of India blocked access to Krafton's battle-royale game BGMI under the same provision of its IT law which it has invoked since 2020 to ban Chinese apps on grounds of national security, a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The section 69A of India's IT law allows the government to block public access to content in the interest of national security, among other reasons. Orders issued under the section are generally confidential in nature.
The government invoked a section of its IT law to impose the ban on Battlegrounds Mobile India, the source, who had direct knowledge but declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter, told Reuters.
Section 69A of India's IT law allows the government to block public access to content in the interest of national security, among other reasons. Orders issued under the section are generally confidential in nature.
Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) and non-profit Prahar had repeatedly asked the government to investigate "China influence" of BGMI, Prahar president Abhay Mishra told Reuters. SJM is the economic wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
"In the so-called new avatar, the BGMI was no different from erstwhile PUBG with Tencent still controlling it in the background," Mishra added.
The ban elicited strong online reactions from popular gamers in India on Twitter and YouTube.
"I hope our government understands that thousands of esports athletes and content creators and their life is dependent on BGMI," tweeted Abhijeet Andhare, a Twitter user with more than 92,000 followers.
“We are clarifying how BGMI was removed from Google Play store and the App store and will let you know once we get specific informationm,” Krafton told Gadgets 360
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