'%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,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAHAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFAABAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABf/aAAgBAQAAAAAdL//EABQBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAX/2gAIAQIQAAAAK//EABQBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAb/2gAIAQMQAAAAQf/EAB4QAAICAgIDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEDAgQFEQASIUFS/9oACAEBAAE/AM1k50U17Fy5YXRW8smELj3mdHoon4375XyqLaFWIUnQg6IYI9onQPnXP//EABcRAQADAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEAAxH/2gAIAQIBAT8AHKhn/8QAGhEAAQUBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQACAxEhQf/aAAgBAwEBPwA26c7xf//Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
The rise of BGMI ever since its release in July 2021 has been nothing short of staggering, with the game establishing itself rapidly as a popular BR game on mobile devices. Thousands of players flock to the game on a daily basis, which has also resulted in the rise of Battlegrounds Mobile India's esports scene.
The game's popularity has also catapulted with the ban of its rival, Garena Free Fire, along with 53 other Chinese-backed apps. However, a recent turn of events has highlighted that there was a ban appeal on Battlegrounds Mobile India as well. To counter that, there was also news reporting on the IT Ministry's response to the appeal.
Details of the ban appeal on BGMI by an NGO and the government's response to it
PRAHAR is a non-governmental organization (NGO) that looks after the socio-economic development of the country. The NGO recently filed an appeal to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) and the Ministry of Home Affairs, urging the government to ban Battlegrounds Mobile India as well.
Trending
The letter stated that the banned game, PUBG Mobile, was relaunched in the country under the new name of Battlegrounds Mobile India by Krafton Inc. (backed by Tencent Games) in order to evade Indian lawmakers.
According to PRAHAR, Tencent is Krafton's second-largest shareholder with a 15.5 percent stake in the company. The Assam-based NGO further claimed that the Chinese corporation has stakes in the promoter's business through various private deals, allowing them control over the organization.
Abhay Mishra, the National Convenor and President of PRAHAR, questioned why Battlegrounds Mobile India was exempted while Free Fire faced the wrath of the ban because Tencent has 18.7 percent of the latter game's stake. He further claimed that BGMI and PUBG are similar as Tencent still controls Battlegrounds Mobile India from behind the scenes.
Furthermore, a PIL was filed in the Telangana High Court by a lawyer, Anil Stevenson Jangam, who requested the government to ban BGMI too.
However, following reports from The New Indian Express, N. Samaya Balan, a representative of MEITY, stated in an affidavit that Battlegrounds Mobile India and PUBG Mobile were not the same application. Although they have similar features, they are different and would be treated as such.
