Mumbai: The Bombay high court has asked Google and Facebook to file a reply within a week on the petition filed against the Blue Whale game. The HC rapped them when their counsel told the court that they had received the copy of the petition a day before the hearing and were not prepared to reply.
The court said, “When the whole world knows about the Blue Whale game, how are you not aware? You should have come prepared.” But the court has still given them a week’s time to file a reply. The state government also did not file its reply on Thursday.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice Nitin Jamdar was hearing the PIL filed by the Citizen Circle for Social Welfare and Education, an NGO against the online game.
The petitioner advocate Shehzad Naqvi said the Google and Facebook counsel sought time to file a reply. “However, I opposed it and argued that since everyone knows the central government issued the advisory against the Blue Whale game on August 11, they (Google and Facebook) should have prepared for the petition.”
The petitioner sought direction from the court to the state government, the Mumbai police commissioner and joint commissioner cyber crime, that they should stop the Blue Whale online game and take necessary legal action against any person promoting or circulating the same and that cyber crime should keep a watch on online websites.
The petitioner wanted the court to frame guidelines and directions to scrutinise online games in India.
He pleaded that till the disposal of the petition, the court needs to appoint an IT expert to assist the court. He also prayed that court should direct authorities to set up a 24/7 helpline to register complaints.
The petition has stated many incidents of death which occurred due to the game in India, including two incidents in Mumbai.
The first of these occured on July 30 this year, when a boy jumped off from a building and ended his life, and the second on August 10, when cops rescued a 14-year-old boy from committing suicide.
