Another Blue Whale Challenge suicide, this time in Kerala

Kerala Police is probing the death of a 16-year-old teenager Manoj C Manu after his parents said he had committed suicide after playing the online game, the Blue Whale Challenge earlier this week.

The police registered a complaint after the Class XI student's parents asked them to investigate their son's death, and blamed the online game for taking his life.

The boy's mother informed the police that he had downloaded the game last year and continued to play it despite their reprimands.

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The Cyber Police said they are in custody of the teenager's mobile phone and have started the probe but are yet to reach a definite conclusion.

The news of the suicide comes the same day that the Indian government directed internet majors - Google, Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram, Microsoft and Yahoo - to immediately remove the links of the dangerous online game from their platforms.

"Instances of children committing suicide while Blue Whale Challenge have been reported in India...You are hereby requested to ensure that any such link of this deadly game in its own name or similar game is immediately removed from your platform," Ministry of Electronics and IT(Meity) said in a letter dated August 11 to the internet majors.

The Blue Whale challenge is reportedly a suicide game in which the player is given certain tasks to complete for a period of 50 days. The final task leads to suicide. The player is also asked to share photos after finishing the challenge.

Expressing concern over the availability of such a deadly game on the internet, Meity said, "It is understood that an administrator of the game uses the social media platform to invite/incite children to play this game, which may eventually lead them to take extreme steps for self-inflicting injuries including suicide".

Deaths linked to the Blue Whale Challenge have previously been reported from Mumbai and Bengal's West Midnapore district.