Mumbai: Taking serious note of the mobile game PUBG, the Bombay High Court said it is the duty of the parents to ensure their children are denied access to such games.
The HC has also asked the Union government to examine the content of the game and if it finds the same to be ‘objectionable’ then issue necessary regulatory directions. A bench of Chief Justice Pradeep Nandrajog and Justice Nitin Jamdar also directed the Centre to ask the service provider of the game to block the same, if required.
The bench, however, refused to issue any direction to schools for imposing a blanket ban on playing the game. “We fail to understand, how can the petitioner seek a direction to schools to ban the game? Schools will say they already do not allow it,” the bench said.
“We do not know what the schools can do, especially when parents are permitting their children to access costly mobiles and such games,” the bench remarked. The observation comes in response to the arguments of a counsel, who has filed a petition seeking a complete ban on playing PUBG on the school premises.
The counsel argued, this game is addictive and several children and adults are addicted to it. He further claimed, the game promotes violence, aggression and cyber-bullying. The bench, however, dismissed his contention on the ground that several schools already prohibit children from bringing mobile phones or video game devices.
