Nepal Supreme Court stays ban on popular video game News
© WikiMedia (Juansang)
Nepal Supreme Court stays ban on popular video game

The Supreme Court of Nepal on Friday issued an interim order directing authorities not to implement a ban imposed by Kathmandu’s District Court on a popular online video game called “PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG).”

Nepal’s Telecommunications Authority had banned the game last week pursuant to the Kathmandu District Court order. Kathmandu’s Metropolitan Crime Division had approached the District Court to ban the online video game after it received complaints from parents and schools on the purported ill effects the game has on children.

Lawyers in Kathmandu filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) before the South Asian country’s apex court against the ban on Tuesday. They argued that the prohibition unreasonably restricted citizens’ right to access the Internet. Nepal’s 2015 constitution guarantees personal liberty and freedom of expression under Article 17. Binay Rimal, one of the petitioners, said, “The government cannot unreasonably curtail the citizens’ right to use the resources on the Internet.”