New Delhi Tamil Nadu has banned online gambling, rekindling a campaign against gaming firms in India that has been going on for over a year and a half. The move comes just three days after the Center included gaming firms under its arbitration rules. Mint Controversy explains:
What just happened in Tamil Nadu?
After much back and forth (even within the state government), the Tamil Nadu Online Gambling Prohibition and Online Games Regulation Ordinance was passed on 10 April. The Bill seeks to prohibit online gambling, its promotion through advertisements, and more. Punitive measures are: imprisonment of up to three months or a fine 5,000, or both. Those who facilitate these games are imprisoned for up to one year or fined 5 lakh, or both. Gambling being a state subject, the MK Stalin-led government has the right to regulate it within its borders.
What are gaming firms saying?
Tamil Nadu’s ban includes rummy and poker, two games that have been facing court battles over their legality for a long time. Indian law states that games of skill cannot be considered gambling. These include fantasy game Dream11 and horse racing. Rummy was described as a game of skill by the Supreme Court 50 years ago. While poker does not have the same SC approval, several High Court judgments have classified it as a game of skill. Since the Constitution of India states that a Supreme Court decision becomes the law of the land, gaming firms argue that the Tamil Nadu ordinance is against the Constitution.
What is the debate about?
Online card games did not exist when the original SC judgment was passed, and hence a case can be made that it treats offline rummy as a game of skill. Since online card games do not involve gauging an opponent’s body language, it can be said that they are not games of skill. To be sure, these questions were raised a decade ago in the US, leading to similar issues.
What is center stand?
On 7 April, the Center amended its information technology rules to include gaming firms as intermediaries. These rules give gaming firms the same protection as social media firms under the IT Act. Some argue that this means the Center considers online gaming to be legal. However, IT regulations are what are called “delegated laws” – they give responsibility for regulating a sector to certain authorities, in this case self-regulatory bodies recognized by the government. They do not eliminate the power of the states to regulate gambling. ,
Why are gaming firms worried about the TN ban?
Tamil Nadu has clarified that only online gambling is prohibited within its borders, and the ordinance does not apply to all online games. Gambling firms worry that the ordinance could set a precedent for other states to impose more restrictions. In India too there are advocates of banning online games like rummy, poker etc. within the overall gaming industry. They worry that the gambling stigma attached to these games could cast a shadow over all mobile and online games that require users to pay money to win.
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