Why Pakistan police has called for a ban on PUBG: All you need to know about it

Pakistani police on Monday called for a ban on the popular mobile game PlayerUnknown’s Battleground (PUBG) after a teenager killed four members of his family in a rage. According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), Ali Zain (18) shot dead his mother, two sisters and a brother on 18 January and later confessed that the game had driven him to violence. “This is not the first incident of its nature,” police investigator Imran Kishwar told reporters in the eastern city of Lahore, adding “so we have decided to recommend a ban”. PUBG is an online multiplayer “battle royale” game in which the winner is the last survivor. This is not the first time authorities have found the mobile game problematic, let’s take a look at all the times when PUBG found itself in hot waters: – The incredibly popular game has been cited as the reason behind increased violence among youth that attracted attention from authorities, which further led it to be banned in some countries. – In July 2020, Pakistan had temporarily banned the popular game after a 16-year-old boy died by suicide when he allegedly “missed his mission” in PUBG. The decision was taken by PTA, the country’s telecommunications regulatory body, terming the game as addictive and detrimental to players’ health. – A few months after in September 2020, the Indian government also banned the mobile game owned by Chinese company Tencent after tension erupted at Galwan Valley between the two countries. – Almost a year later, the app returned to India under a different name and some changes in its interface. The game was released as Battlegrounds Mobile India in June 2021. – The game was also banned in Nepal in 2019 after the government deemed its content to be too violent for the youngsters. The ban was, however, overturned by the Nepal Supreme Court after several lawyers filed petitions against it. – The Afghanistan Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (ATRA) imposed a temporary ban on the game in December 2020. – Iran had also banned PUBG in 2019 stating that it caused social and psychological issues among the public. The authorities said that such games are a potential national security threat. – An unlikely name in the list is China. Even though Tencent is a Chinese company, the game was banned in the country because of the bloodshed involved. The game was replaced by a version called Game For Peace to meet the country’s regulations. Disconcerting incidents connected with PUBG in India Every few days the name of PUBG is associated with some or other sort of violent incident in India. Before the ban was imposed and after it was lifted crimes and accidents have been reported across the country in which PUBG was the alleged culprit. Here are some of such incidents: – In May 2019, two men engrossed in playing PUBG were run over by a train in Hingoli district in Maharashtra. – In June 2019, a 15-year-old boy from Bhiwandi in Thane district of Maharashtra allegedly killed his elder brother for scolding him over playing PUBG game on his mobile phone. – In April 2020, a 13-year-old boy committed suicide allegedly after his parents stopped him from playing PUBG. –In June 2020, a 22-year-old man in Maharashtra’s Yavatmal hanged himself at home. His family members claimed he was addicted to playing PUBG for as long as 16 hours a day. – A class 9 student in Rajasthan’s Kota too committed suicide in June 2020. The police said that he was addicted to mobile games and had downloaded PUBG two days ago. – In November 2021, two boys were crushed to death by a goods train in Mathura’s Laxmi Nagar. The boys were engrossed in playing PUBG, the police said. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.