Police in Ghaziabad have written to the state government urging a ban on five online gaming applications that allegedly led three minor girls to jump to their deaths from a high-rise last week. The girls had mentioned the games in their suicide note, police said.
“In their suicide note, there is mention of five online gaming apps that the girls were using. We have written to the state authorities to get the apps banned. This recommendation will further be sent from the state to the Centre for taking appropriate steps,” deputy commissioner of police (DCP- trans-Hindon zone) Nimish Patil told HT.
The three girls, aged 11, 14, and 16, jumped from the ninth-floor flat of their high-rise around 2am on February 4.
According to police, investigation revealed that the girls consumed Korean popular culture and spent long hours watching K-dramas, K-pop videos, and related content.
The five games mentioned in the letter are Poppy Playtime, The Baby in Yellow, Evil Nun, Ice Cream Man, and Ice Game, police officers said.
The girls’ father had told media that the children had stopped attending school for the past three years and became addicted to mobile and online content.
Taking note of the incident, Babita Singh Chauhan, chairperson of UP state women’s commission, met the family of the girls at their residence on Saturday.
Chauhan raised concerns about children’s growing addiction to mobile and online games, and also wrote to district magistrates to direct schools not to send projects/assignments on the mobile phones of children up to class 5.
An investigation in the case is still on, but so far police have not found any evidence of foul play.
“A team is also sent to Delhi to get statements from the girls’ maternal grandfather. As of now, nothing suspicious has emerged in the case, and we are treating it as a case of suicide. An inquiry into the case is being taken up by an ACP rank officer,” the DCP added.