Online Gambling Laws In India
India Gambling Online Laws
India Internet Gambling Law
Online Gambling Laws In India

The world is swiftly moving towards a more liberal viewpoint towards games of ‘skill’; Indian gambling and online gaming laws are either archaic or non-existent. The current government hasn’t put forth any dedicated gambling laws in India, and this century has hardly seen any techno-legal framework being formed.

While the age-old debate about what form of gambling is legal or not continues; it’s pretty evident that Indians love to gamble. According to a report published by the International Centre for Sports Security (ICSS), the betting market in India might be worth over US$130 billion. When you’ve finished reading up on the gambling laws in India – place a bet at any of the bookmakers listed below!

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There is a law in India that says it is illegal to fund online gambling sites without using Rupees. This law is called the Foreign Exchange Management Act. If you are to place a bet at an online bookmaker or gaming site you need to do so in Rupees. Hence, online games, even those requiring a high degree of skill, conducted by gaming sites offering prize money and partaking a slice of the winning hand are illegal in states which prohibit gambling. Courts in India have also stated that such online gaming portals are essentially a substitute for traditional casinos since websites operate as. Parliament can enact legislations on betting and gambling under Entry 31 of List 1 of VII Schedule of the Constitution of India since online betting and gambling are offered and played over media. Certain skill centric games should be made an exception to the prohibition on “gambling”. Form of online gaming that has transformed physical sports into virtual sports, e-games, e-sports, online games, fantasy sports, etc. As on date we have no dedicated online gaming and online gambling laws in India. Similarly, we have no dedicated fantasy sports law in India till now. This is in line with the exiting game laws like online poker.

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In this article, we’ll clarify the latest stance of the legislative authorities on betting and gambling laws. We’ll answer the following questions:

Is gambling legal in India?

It’s a tough question to answer. The Indian government’s outlook towards gambling and betting remains in a grey area. A few sports revel in complete approval from the authorities while other (though sharing the exact same characteristics) are completely shunned.

Horse racing and rummy are considered games of skill and thus free to bet on, while cricket and poker don’t share the same distinction in the eyes of Indian lawmakers.

Poker is a major grey area in Indian law. It’s quite interesting that games such as Teen Patti (flush) and Texas Hold ’em are banned while Rummy is allowed. Perhaps even more interesting – horse racing (one of the easiest games to fix) is legal to wager on based it is a skill game, yet cricket betting which requires the same sort of skill set is banned?!!

Gone are the days of matka gambling and the likes in India. Nowadays, you can only bet on a few sports/games, that too in particular states. Currently, horse racing, online poker, online rummy, lottery, and a few casinos are legal in India. To understand the convoluted stance of each state on the legality of these sports will take time and patience for the reader. Let’s try to address all of these issues today.

Why are there different state gambling laws in India?

If you notice, different states have different gambling laws even though there are centralized Acts in place. So, why do gambling/betting laws differ in different states?

The answer is the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India which explicitly gives states the right to legislate and make policies related to “gambling and betting”. It is quite clear in the Seventh Schedule Entry 34 List II which says states could legalize gambling should they choose to do so.

Every state government is free to enact as well as legislate gambling laws as per their discretion. Also, the Central Government cannot intervene in any of the state proceedings.

To date, most Indian states have only made laws against gambling, while 13 states have legalized lottery, and two states (Goa and Sikkim) have legalized many other forms of gambling. With a country as diverse as India and 29 separate states, you can only imagine the variance in gambling laws.

Let’s look at a few state examples:

Legal Casino Gambling in Goa

Goa has made two amendments to the Goa, Daman and Diu Public Gambling Act, 1976 to legalize certain forms of gambling. The relevant section from that act is listed below:

26[13A. Authorised Game.– (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the Government may authorised any game of electronic amusement/slot machines in Five Star Hotels 27 {and such table games and gaming on board in vessels offshore as may be notified} subject to such conditions, including payment of such recurring and non-recurring fees, as may be prescribed.

27 Inserted by the Amendment Act 13 of 1996.

As of October 2011, there are seven land-based casinos and several offshore casinos that operate legally in Goa.

Legal Gambling in Sikkim

Sikkim is a second Indian State that has legalized gambling.

1) The Sikkim Casino Games (Control and Tax Rules), 2002 gives the Sikkim Government the authority to grant licenses to individual and business interested in operating casinos.

2) The Sikkim Regulation of Gambling (Amendment) Act, 2005 gives the Sikkim Government the authority to authorize gambling on certain days and to make specific gambling houses legal at their own discretion by way of a license.

Sikkim also became the first Indian State to legalize internet gambling.

The state of Sikkim has begun taking applications to license online gambling where the servers are located within the state. This includes casino gambling, lottery, and sports betting.

Many believe that once these licensed sports betting sites come online that players located in states where there are no gambling laws will be able to use them legally. This has caused popular online gambling sites such as William Hill and Betfair to eye India as the next major market to expand to.

This, however, has a major challenge – foreign investments involving gambling are illegal under Indian law.

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Gambling Laws and Betting Acts in India

Despite gambling being in a grey area in India, there are many legislations in place. We will look closely at the important ones. The following are a few examples:

The Public Gambling Act, 1867
Payment and Settlement Act, 2007
Assam Gaming and Betting Act, 1970
Bombay Prevention of Gambling Act, 1887
Goa, Daman and Diu Public Gambling Act, 1976
Karnataka Police Act, 1963
Madhya Pradesh (C.P.) Public Gambling Act,1867
Madhya Bharat Gambling Act, 1949
Orissa Prevention of Gambling Act, 1955
Public Gambling Act, 1867 Constitution of India, Seventh Schedule, List II, Entry No. 34
Punjab Public Gambling Act, 1867
Sikkim Online Gaming (Regulation) Act, 2008
Tamil Nadu City Police Gaming Rules, 1949
Tamil Nadu Gaming Act, 1930
The Andhra Pradesh Gaming Act, 1974
The Andhra Pradesh Gaming Rules, 1976
The Delhi Public Gambling Act, 1955
The J. & K. Public Gambling Act, 1977
The Kerala Gambling Act, 1960
The Meghalaya Prevention of Gambling Act, 1970
The Pondicherry Gaming Act, 1965
The Rajasthan Public Gambling Ordinance, 1949
The West Bengal Gambling and Prize Competitions Act, 1957
The West Bengal Gambling Rules, 1958
Uttar Pradesh Public Gambling Act,1961

The Public Gambling Act, 1867

The primary legislative document that makes gambling in India a ‘grey’ legality is the Public Gambling Act. This is an old law created during British rule. This 145-year-old law makes operating a gambling house, assisting in the operation

India Gambling Online Law