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What led to BGMI’s removal from the Google and Apple app stores in India?

Two years after PUBG was banned in India, a rebranded version of the game called Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) has been removed from Apple and Google app stores. Why has it been delisted?

August 14, 2022170 views0

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One of the most popular Chinese applications, BGMI, was renamed and released on September 2, 2020, following the Indian government’s ban on PUBG mobile.

Battlegrounds Mobile India by Krafton has been banned in India (BGMI). On July 28, 2022, Google and Apple removed the Krafton’s game under Indian government instructions. This development comes a year after india banned popular game PUBG.

According to confirmation from Google and Apple, BGMI was removed from both stores in compliance with a decision from the Indian government. A Google spokesperson said, “On receipt of the order, following the established process, we have notified the affected developer and have blocked access to the app that remained available on the Play Store in India.”

While the Indian government has not said why it has banned BGMI, Reuters reports that the government has banned BGMI using Section 69A of the IT Act, the same provision that was used to restrict PUBG Mobile.

Many young players who frequently play this game were baffled by the sudden ban, there seem to be various reasons behind this sudden ban.

The Incident Where A Child Allegedly Killed His Mother Over The BGMI

After Boy Kills Mother Over PUBG, NCPCR Questions MeitY Over Availability Of Banned Apps The NCPCR Chief requested a report of action within 10 days and challenged the MeitY to explain why such prohibited applications were still available in the public domain.

NCPCR wrote to MeitY Secy over media reports that boy shot dead his mother for stopping him from playing PUBG

"It is beyond understanding of the Commission, that how a banned game in India, which has been blocked by GoI is still available for use by minors," reads the letter
— ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2022

Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, drew attention to media reports that stated that a boy killed his mother when she stopped him from playing online game PUBG, Although PUBG Mobile is already prohibited in India, he stated in the Rajya Sabha that it is alarming when prohibited apps appear under new names. Further, he said that the home ministry had received games like this for investigation.

PRAHAR – NGO Wanted BGMI To Get Banned In India

An earlier request for a ban on BGMI under section 69A of the Information Technology Act came from PRAHAR, a nonprofit organisation that promotes the socio-economic development of society. The letter was sent to the Ministries of Home Affairs and Information Technology.

Section 69A in The Information Technology Act, 2000

Similar to PUBG Mobile, Section 69A of the Information Technology Act of 2000 prohibited BGMI. Players were able to understand the justification for the ban on the international version because it had Chinese roots, but the reasoning behind the ban on the Indian version is still up for debate because the battle royale game was released a year ago and was made specifically for the Indian market. Additionally, it was created and released by the South Korean business KRAFTON.

Chinese tech giant Tencent also has a 13.5% stake in Krafton. Tencent was the developer of PUBG Mobile, first released in China, The GOI is worried about problems with data migration and connections to Chinese companies.

A Krafton representative said: “We are explaining the way that BGMI was taken out from Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store and will tell you once we get explicit data”.

Google releases a statement, “On receipt of the order, following established process, we have notified the affected developer and have blocked access to the app that remained available on the Play Store in India.”