The ‘Potraja’ tribal community in Indapur of Pune District in Maharashtra has started protesting against online rummy ads. This is in connection to the celebrity endorsements for various online rummy and gaming sites. Joining the protest, a Shiv Sena member from Indapur, Ashok Devkar, has demanded imposing a permanent ban on the same.
The protests by the tribal community were under the ‘Bheek Maango Aandolan’. The protests Indapur were performed by beating themselves with a hunter, a traditional practice. A man, from Nashik, led the foundation of the protest in July.
As per Lokmat’s reports, Devkar stated that Bheek Maango Andolan is an initiative started to fulfill the needs of actors and cricketers who advertise online rummy for money. Indapur’s local committee convener, Krishna Tate, also supported the protest. Tate iterated that if everyone unites, it’s not impossible to ban online rummy.
The protests were targeted towards Bollywood actor Ajay Devgn, who also happens to endorse Junglee Rummy, an online rummy platform. People said that the actor is negatively influencing the youth in state and is making them addicted to rummy.
People in Maharashtra being serious about online gaming addiction
Maharashtra’s public seems to be seriously triggered by the number of suicidal cases due to online rummy and gaming addiction. While a few people have become debt-ridden and sold valuables to pay off their debts, a few people took extreme steps, thereby, taking a toll on their lives.
It is noteworthy to mention that a man from Nanded also addressed a letter to Ajay Devgn. In the letter, he asked if Devgn has really won while playing rummy, or is endorsing it only for money.
Not just Ajay Devgn and Junglee Rummy, several celebrities are seen promoting different sites, which initially attracts the youth by giving them hopes of winning lakhs of money. However, people eventually lose money, get addicted, and take extreme steps as they don’t see a purpose in life afterwards. Here, only the celebrities and companies make money, while common public loses their hard-earned money.
People should take an informed decision while playing on these platforms with their hard-earned money. In fact, an honest advice would be to play only with as much amount as a player can afford to lose. In order to continue playing, the players must do so with due diligence.