Online Casino India – Is gambling legal?

Online Gambling laws in India prohibit betting or wagering and any act which is intended to aid or facilitate the same. Gambling being a State subject, gambling in India has laws that differ from state to state. This would mean what is permitted in one State may be an offense in another. The Public Gambling Act, 1867, is the central enactment on the subject, which has been adopted by certain states of India like Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, etc. The other states have enacted their own legislation to regulate gambling in India activities within its territory. It is to be noted that State Legislations have been enacted prior to the advent of virtual/online live casino in India and therefore references of gaming/gambling in India, in respective state legislatures are in relation to physical premises only, barring Sikkim and Nagaland which are the only States who have introduced regulations pertaining the online gaming.

After going through the State gambling laws for online gambling in India, it is found that, except for the State of Orissa and Assam, most of the States have excluded ‘games of skill’ from the applicability of their respective gambling laws. Further, playing certain games including ‘Poker’, both online and offline, is permitted under the laws of West Bengal, Nagaland, and Sikkim subject to a license from the appropriate State Authorities. But this would be applicable only in the territorial limits of the respective State. In Goa, gambling is permitted only in Government permitted places operated as casinos.

The issue of online gambling in India laws in India still remains a grey area that is yet to be adjudicated by courts of India. Having said that, necessary inferences can be drawn from orders passed by the Court while deciding the issue of whether a particular game is a ‘game of skill’ or a ‘game of chance’. But the issue of whether a ‘game of chance’, if played like a sport without stakes amounts to gambling or not? still remains largely undecided.

Its A game of chance

There has been a substantial discussion by the Supreme Court and High Court on what constitutes a ‘game of skill’ and a ‘game of chance’. What is adduced from the judgments is that a game where there is a preponderance of skill over chance is a ‘game of skill’ and vice-versa?

By taking the above ratio into account, SC in the matter of State of AP v. K.Satyanarayana(1968) held the game of Rummy to be a ‘game of skill’. However, the Court in its judgment has indicated that if there is gambling or if the gambling house is making a profit from the game of rummy, then it could amount to an offense under the laws of AP. It was further observed by SC that the three-card game which goes under different names such as flush, brag, etc. is a game of pure chance. This was relied upon by SC in another of its other judgments viz. M.J.Sivani v. State of Karnataka (1995) and Dr. K.R. Lakshmanan vs State Of Tamil Nadu And Anr (1996).

The issue of whether rummy, if played with stakes, amounts to gambling or not has not been decided by the Supreme Court. However, Andra Pradesh High Court in D. Krishna Kumar And Anr. vs State Of A.P.(2002) (Annexure-2) relying upon the SC decision of 1968 held that till such time the state gambling Act is amended to lay down that playing Rummy with stakes is “gaming”, playing Rummy with stakes is not ‘gaming’ within the meaning of the Act and is therefore allowed.

High Court on Poker

The issue of whether Poker is a ‘game of skill’ or a ‘game of chance’ was never discussed in detail by any Court in India until the recent decision/order dated December 4, 2017, passed by Gujrat High Court in Dominance Games Pvt. the Ltd. V. State of Gujarat, wherein, the said issue was extensively pondered upon. The Court in its said decision held that Poker is a ‘game of chance’ and therefore amounts to gambling under the Gujarat Prevention of Gambling Act, 1887. While arriving at the aforesaid decision, the Court inter alia observed the top online casinos in India and thus made up the following:

• That the game of poker originated from ‘flush’ or ‘Indian teenpatti’ which has been observed by SC as a game of chance in its 1968 judgment and consequently, as a corollary, the game of poker is also to be construed as a game of chance;
• The game of poker involves a process wherein the players have no control or say on the cards received by them and the final outcome is based on mere luck or chance depending upon how the cards are received by the player. Poker face to bet would be a part of bluffing or deception and the so-called strategy, cannot be considered as a skill. The outcome also depends on the ability of a player to spend money and how deep are his pockets. It is a game of deceiving, bluffing, and duping other players;
• The game of Rummy is different than Poker. While poker involves betting or wagering, rummy has nothing to do with stakes, and betting or wagering is not essential to the game of rummy;
• The Court while noting the ills of gambling and impact of gambling on the moral fiber of society noted that ‘one must not overlook the ground realities in India or the country like India, where the majority of the population is struggling for the basic necessity and there is lack of awareness amongst the people and if they are permitted by betting in the craze of easy money, they do not know what to do if the things go wrong.’

Online casinos in India list has changed several times, due to the regulations and legislations implemented by the country’s officials. Online gambling, including live casinos, online poker, and many other table games are now legal in India though with certain conditions.

Though the order does not specifically make any observation on Poker, if played as a sport and/or without stakes, however, while differentiating between rummy and poker, the Hon’ble Court at para 60 of the said order makes a presumption that wagering or betting is an inseparable part of the game of poker and therefore would involve stake. The Court while holding Poker to be a ‘game of chance’ has also predominantly relied upon moral religious and social grounds. In the absence of the said order being overruled and the issue being addressed specifically, the game of poker, even if played as a sport and/or without stakes remains a grey area that is then left at the discretion of police authorities.

Position of Online Gambling

Though the issue of Poker was considered by Gujarat High Court in view of the provisions of Gujarat Prevention of Gambling Act, 1887, in arriving at the decision of Poker being a ‘game of chance’, the court made several observations like how the game is played, origin of the game, reference to ancient Indian literature, moral and religious grounds, etc. which may be applied by other states/state machinery having similar gambling laws. The issue is likely to be clarified by the Division Bench of Gujarat High Court, once the appeal is finally heard.

In view of the above, it is clear that if a game is considered to be a ‘game of chance’ under the state laws and rulings by the Courts and is played with stakes, would constitute gambling under the respective state laws with exception pertaining to a few states as mentioned above. If an entity is able to show that a particular best casino In India online or a particular on-ground gaming activity has a preponderance of skill over chance and/or is played as a sport without stakes, it may fall within the exception of gaming/gambling under the state gambling laws. It is pertinent to note however that if online gaming is illegal in any State, the promotion of the same in such a State would amount to a violation of the ASCI Code as well as the Cable-TV Network Regulation Act, 1994.

While Gambling can indeed be one of the biggest industries active for Indian citizens, online gambling should be increasing in the country shortly. There are some online casinos that stand together under the regulations, and thus many best casinos online in India very popular both among the locals as well as international visitors.

FAQ on Online Casino India