The Karnataka High Court will take up a petition on August 30 filed by leading online gaming platform A23, which has challenged the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025. The matter was urgently mentioned before the court by senior advocates C Aryama Sundaram and Dhyan Chinnappa.
The new law, which received presidential assent on August 22 after being cleared by both houses of Parliament, enforces a blanket ban on all forms of online money gaming—irrespective of whether they are based on skill or chance, reported Live Law. This represents a major shift from earlier judicial interpretations that drew a line between games of skill, such as rummy and poker, and games of chance, like betting or lotteries.
Under the Act, offences linked to organising, facilitating, or participating in online money games are categorised as cognisable and non-bailable. The police are empowered to arrest without a warrant and search premises without prior approval, reported India Today. Penalties prescribed under the law include imprisonment of up to three years and fines of up to Rs 1 crore. Repeat offenders may face mandatory minimum jail terms and fines that could go as high as Rs 2 crore.
In its petition, A23 has argued that the sweeping ban violates constitutional guarantees, particularly the right to practise any profession or carry on any trade or business under Article 19(1)(g), reported Business Today. The company contends that the elimination of the long-standing skill-based exemption undermines established jurisprudence that has consistently recognised rummy, poker, and other skill-dominant formats as legitimate business activities.
The outcome of this case will likely set the tone for the future of India’s online gaming industry, which has grown rapidly in recent years but continues to operate amid frequent legal challenges and shifting regulatory frameworks.
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