India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has addressed widespread speculations about a potential ban on Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI). In response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by a Hyderabad resident, a MeitY representative confirmed that PUBG Mobile and BGMI are entirely different games.
The recent ban on Free Fire and 54 other Chinese-linked apps has fueled rumors that Krafton's BGMI, often mistaken for a rebranded PUBG Mobile, could face the same fate. These concerns prompted Anil Stevenson Jangam, a Hyderabad-based lawyer, to file a PIL in the Telangana High Court urging a nationwide ban on BGMI.
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In his petition, Jangam argued that BGMI mirrors the banned PUBG Mobile with only superficial changes. He stated: "BGMI and the banned application PUBG Mobile are the same game with only cosmetic changes. The new application Battlegrounds Mobile India is fraught with all the dangers its banned earlier version posed to our children and adolescents. Therefore, the new version also deserves to be banned."
The lawyer further alleged that Tencent was attempting to re-enter India via proxy companies, posing a national security threat. He called on the court to regulate online gaming and notify central authorities.
MeitY's N. Samaya Balan countered that PUBG Mobile and BGMI are distinct products. The ministry also noted it has received no formal requests to ban BGMI.
This isn't the first call for restrictions on BGMI. The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) and an Assam-based NGO have previously urged a ban, reflecting ongoing debates about gaming regulations in India.
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