Amid a string of mysterious deaths/murders of Indian youth studying in US colleges and universities, a 20-year-old student, who lost his life last month in Boston, reportedly took his own life. As per reports, the case could possibly be linked to ‘Blue Whale Challenge’, a game which has earned notoriety as the ‘Suicidal game’.
Notably, the Indian student whose identity has been kept confidential as per his family’s wishes, was a first-year student from the University of Massachusetts. He was found dead in an abandoned car on 8th March 2024. According to official sources, while purportedly playing the ‘Blue Whale challenge’, he was holding his breath for two minutes which reportedly led to his unfortunate demise.
Initially, his death was widely reported as a murder last month when he was misidentified as a student in Boston University. However, the spokesperson for the Bristol County District Attorney, Gregg Miliote said the case is being investigated as “apparent suicide“.
Miliote said, “We have no information on this. The case is being investigated as an apparent suicide. We are awaiting the medical examiner’s final conclusions before the case is closed. This happened on March 22. There has been no response to requests for an update. He did not respond to a text and a voice call message on Friday.”
It is pertinent to note that while the Boston Globe newspaper subsequently identified the Indian student by name, OpIndia has redacted his identity in respect of his family’s wishes.
However, the cause of his death allegedly by suicide while playing the “suicidal game”, ‘Blue Whale Challenge’ needs to be brought into spotlight to spread awareness about the “game” that has been preying on teenagers and young adults around the world.
From simple dare to ‘watch movies’ to killing oneself in the 50th step: Blue Whale Challenge
Reportedly, the recent case might be the first instance of a Blue Whale challenge that resulted in the demise of an Indian student (in recent past).
Earlier, the Indian government had wanted to ban this game years ago but it settled for a more detailed advisory instead.
As per reports, the Blue Whale Challenge is an online game in which participants are given dares to perform in 50 steps. At first dares look harmless and simple like “Wake up in the middle of the night” or “Watch a film” but they become progressively harder with self-harm coming in the final stages. In the 50th step, the participant is ultimately asked to kill themselves.
The insidious nature of the game lies in its targeting of vulnerable teenagers and young individuals grappling with depression. It traps them with the allure of excitement and the adrenaline rush of daring challenges, exploiting their fragile emotional state for sinister purposes. Even if, some participants want to quit midway, they are threatened, blackmailed or cyberbullied to complete the ‘challenge’.
According to BBC, the tasks grow more sinister like “Stand on the ledge of a tower block” or “Cut a whale into your arm” and the final challenge is for the user to kill themselves.
As per BBC report, the Blue Whale challenge reportedly originated in Russia, but it soon spread to other countries like Ukraine, India and the United States and lead to hundreds of deaths.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) issued an advisory calling the game an “abetment to suicide”.
The advisory read, “The creators seek out their players/victims who are in depression and send them an invitation to join… Players of the challenge can’t stop playing once they’ve started; they are blackmailed and cyberbullied into completing the “game.”
Additionally, the Supreme Court had once described the Blue Whale challenge a “national problem” and directed television channels to help create awareness about the deadly game. The Centre had set up an expert committee to look into the issue.
There’s widespread speculation surrounding the connection between the game and blue whales. Some journalists suggest it’s because of the phenomenon where whales beach themselves, often leading to their demise. Others believe it could be a reference to lyrics from a Russian rock band called Lumen.
A suspect who later pleaded guilty was arrested in Russia for ‘creating’ the Challenge
In May 2016, an article by journalist Galina Mursalieva in Novaya Gazeta stated that inside certain online groups, some of them with enigmatic names like “Ocean Whales” and “f57”, existed a game.
In this game, so-called “curators” would set players 50 tasks over 50 days. On the last day the user was instructed to take their own life. The Novaya Gazeta report estimated that 130 children might have killed themselves between November 2015 and April 2016 because of their participation in these groups. It would come to be known worldwide as the Blue Whale challenge, the BBC reported.
Following the publication of the article, the governor for Ulyanovsk in western Russia went on television to compare the Blue Whale challenge to the Islamic State group.
While BBC in its report argued that the game doesn’t exist, 21-year-old Philipp Budeikin was arrested in November 2016. He was charged with inciting teenagers to suicide and Budeikin appeared to admit culpability.
He told Russian media outlet Saint-Petersburg.ru: “There are people, and then there is biodegradable waste. I was cleansing our society of such people. Sometimes I start to think that it’s wrong, but in the end I had the feeling I was doing the right thing.”
He said he had created the game in 2013 under the name “f57”, combining the sound of the start of his name, Philipp, and the last two digits of his phone number. On 10 May of 2017 he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to three years in prison.
Meanwhile, while reports link the death of the Indian student who died in Boston, last month with the ‘Blue Whale Challenge’, around 11 Indian students have been found dead in the US under mysterious circumstances this year.
