1. Online casinos accepting players from India. Gambling is a time-honored pastime for many of the people of India. The country is home to more than 1.3 billion people with a middle class that doubled in size from 2004 to 2012 and includes over 600 million people.
2. Legally illegal, but you can bet online in India Betting or gambling is illegal in most of India. But there is no law that makes online betting an illegal activity.

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Gambling in India varies by state as states in India are entitled to formulate their own laws for gambling activities. Some states like Goa have legalised casinos. Common gambling activities like organized betting is restricted except for selective categories including lotteries and horse racing.

In the 21st century, more people have started making cash bets upon prohibited betting and gambling activities in India. Critics of gambling claim that it leads to crime, corruption and money laundering. However, proponents of regulated gambling argue that it can be a huge source of revenue for the state. Casinos in Goa contributed Rs. 135 crores to the state revenue in 2013.^[1]

Casinos now operate in Goa, Daman and Sikkim.^[2]

Legality[edit]

Gambling is a state subject, and only states in India are entitled to formulate laws for gambling activities within their respective states. The Public Gambling Act of 1867 is a central law that prohibits running or being in charge of a public gambling house. The penalty for breaking this law is a fine of ₹200 or imprisonment of up to 3 months. Additionally, this Act prohibits visiting gambling houses. A fine of ₹100 or imprisonment of up to one month is the penalty.^[3]

Indian law classifies games into two broad categories viz. game of skill and game of chance. The Supreme Court of India has, for instance, held^[4]

The game of Rummy is not a game entirely of chance like the ‘three-card’ game mentioned in the Madras case to which we were referred. The ‘three card’ game which goes under different names such as ‘flush’, ‘brag’ etc. is a game of pure chance. Rummy, on the other hand, requires a certain amount of skill because the fall of the cards has to be memorised and the building up of Rummy requires considerable skill in holding and discarding cards. We cannot, therefore, say that the game of Rummy is a game of entire chance. It is mainly and preponderantly a game of skill.

The Information Technology Act 2000 regulates cyber activities in India does not mention the word Gambling or Betting thereby the act was left for interpretation by the Courts which have refused to examine the matter. Further, online gambling is a banned offense in the state of Maharashtra under the 'Bombay Wager Act'.

Only three states allow casinos, Goa , Daman and Sikkim.^[5] There are two casinos in Sikkim called Casino Sikkim and Casino Mahjong and 10 in Goa, of which six are land based and four are floating casinos that operate on the Mandovi River. The floating casinos in Goa are Casino Deltin Royale, Casino Deltin Jaqk, Casino Pride and Casino Pride 2. While the first two are controlled by the Deltin Group, the latter two are managed by the Pride Group. According to the Goa, Daman and Diu Public Gambling Act, 1976 casinos can be set up only at five star hotels or offshore vessels with the prior permission of the government. This has led the Deltin Group to open the first land based Casino in Daman which is open now. News reports also suggest that Visakhapatnam is also being looked on as the next casino destination.^[6]

The penalty for being caught gambling online has been a fine of ₹ 90,000 per day since 2009.^[7]

Online[edit]

Online gambling is in its infancy in India, but Sikkim planned to offer three online gambling licences in 2010. This failed despite India being the most sought out country for online gambling.^[8] Sikkim also permits an online lottery, which takes bets from players throughout India. It was expected that other states would follow Sikkim, thereby opening up a major online gambling market throughout India.

Even though Indian casinos cannot promote or have sites that promote online gambling games such as casino, sports betting and bingo, it is not illegal for non-Indian casino companies (so called offshore companies) to have sites that focus on Indian players. The only requirement from a legal point of view is that the offshore casinos have to offer Indian Rupees as a payment method for Indian players. Although this is not accurate anymore since January 2020.

Legalisation[edit]

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Despite the existing prohibitive legislations, there is extensive illegal gambling throughout the country. The Indian gambling market is estimated to be worth US$60 billion per year, of which about half is illegally bet.^[9] According to the Indian National Newspaper, the Chief Executive officer for the International Cricket Council (ICC) said he was in favour of legalising betting in sports. He believes the illegal funds profited are through underground bookies that used the money to fund terrorism and drugs.^[10] Many Indian professionals as well as online forums have urged the government to introduce legal but regulated gambling in India to bring the gambling economy out of the grip of mafia and underground dons.^[11]

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Payment gateways[edit]

One of the biggest obstacles faced by sports bettors in India is the fact that depositing to foreign bookies is extremely difficult. Typically, the majority of users deposit to online bookies using Moneybookers or Neteller. Some attempts to deposit using a Visa or MasterCard may fail. The same is true of online bank transfers. In order to circumvent these blocks, savvy internet users have started to use e wallet services for depositing. These services, enable users to fund an online betting account in Rupees. This is important because it avoid legal issues that may have arisen out of F.E.M.A Foreign Exchange law.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^'Goa casinos contribute Rs 135cr revenue in 2012-13 - Times of India'.
2. ^Reddem, Appaji. 'NRI bets on Andhra Pradesh, moots casino on the Krishna'. The Hindu. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
3. ^'The Public Gambling Act, 1867'. www.indiankanoon.org.
4. ^Sayta, Jay (January 1, 2012). 'LEGALITY OF POKER AND OTHER GAMES OF SKILL: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF INDIA'S GAMING LAWS'(PDF). NUJS Law Review. Archived from the original(PDF) on November 2, 2013. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
5. ^Patil, Ajit (28 May 2009). 'Casinos in India'. India Bet. Archived from the original on 9 April 2011. Retrieved 28 October 2009.
6. ^'Casinos want to gamble on Visakhapatnam'. Deccan Chronicle. 3 November 2014. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
7. ^http://threezly.com/groups/indian-supreme-court-to-rule-on-legality-of-rummy-and-poker/members/
8. ^Sanjay, Roy (27 October 2009). 'Indian online gambling market set to open up'. India Bet. Retrieved 28 October 2009.
9. ^Thompson, James (27 October 2009). 'Betfair and William Hill target India'. The Independent. Retrieved 28 October 2009.
10. ^'Sports Betting Favoured by ICC'. CasinoOnline.net.in. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
11. ^Ashok, Donnie. 'Jay Sayta, Founder Glaws.in, on how he became an authority in Gambling Laws'. Superlawyer.in. Superlawyer. Retrieved 2014-12-21.

Update:Pokerstars is already said to be eyeing the country and have begun marketing efforts for play money Indian players by using Diwali.

Yes. This is one of the most commonly asked questions from bettors in India, but also from operators looking to tap into the 1.25 billion people and the largest growing middle class. As with all legal questions it is difficult to answer as India believes gambling to be “taboo” and many legalities and loopholes exist. Indian states are also actively seeking to legalize the gambling business. Let me give you a break down of the laws that have occurred over the latest years. First, if you just want a site then look below.

Where Indians Bet Online

BET365.com – This is the main destination for punters from India who want to bet online. They have been successful in this small market because they allow you to bet with Rupees, and offer other methods to fund your account legally. It’s also probably the safest bookmaker out of the UK to service India. Before betting, we recommend you familiarize yourself with the most simple cricket betting strategies as it is the most bet on sport in India.

Federal Information Technology Rules

This was the most recently introduced law by Indian government. As you can see by the title, it covers a vast array of anything on the internet in which they consider to be either illegal or taboo. Please note, there were no laws that actually made it illegal to allow online gambling by the states of India. Ok, so this FIT Act basically says if something is illegal or taboo the Internet Provider (ISP) must block such site. Can anyone say China? This type of censorship simply doesn’t work and hasn’t scared away people from India from betting online. They did the same in China and other Asian countries and it didn’t work which is why the USA uses different tactics to block betting so I’m not sure what they’re trying to accomplish.

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Let’s go a little more in depth to this law.

• Gambling: Firstly it says “gambling” is illegal and therefore should be blocked. Gambling is the act of wagering on something where the outcome is uncertain, or is not a game of skill. Well the word gambling covers just about everything you place a bet on and many forms of gambling are skill.
• Poker: Ok so now we have to look at poker. It has been proven by many professionals and gaming experts that poker is in fact skill. There is no such evidence proving otherwise but many governments simply turn the other way and put online poker into “gambling”. Poker is skill, and skill games are NOT illegal in India.
• Sports: Online betting on sports can also be singled out. Sports bettors all over the world make a living on sports betting. Some people have it down to such a science that bookies won’t even take their bet, or because the bettors are so good they can actually change the odds by how much they wager! Sportsbetting is skill, therefore, should it be covered under “gambling”?
• Casino: Online casino games are one form where it can actually be considered gambling. Fortunately, for the way India’s laws are written it gives states the ability to allow what they want. This is why you see Sikkim offering games online such as horse betting and online lotteries.

Can I Play Online Casino In India Online

Skill or Gambling; Anything we do in life can be based on luck or skill. As the saying goes, “you prepare yourself to get lucky”. Governments who preach that something is gambling or skill simply need to quit that as it leaves too much left for interpretation. If they want everything to be black and white they need to say ok, poker is skill, casinos (per game) are not and so on. Either way it is up to the states so this newly imposed website blocking will fail, there are too many ways around it.

The Public Gambling Act of 1867

That’s right my fellow Indians, we still have government trying to impose laws on us that happened before online betting even existed. The internet was no where near being invented when this law was passed, and yet many government officials try to point to it and say, hey look here, we DO have laws that make online betting illegal. False. Let me reiterate again, this is a Federal law and Sikkim allowed online betting after and during those past years. IT IS UP TO THE STATES, not outdated laws!

The Government Wants Legal Online Betting

Firstly, the government says they want legal online betting in India because it would curb corruption with illegal bookies that have supposedly used match fixing to fund terrorism and crime. While this was the case, it is simply a front to put forth online gambling so that they can tax the heck out of it. The Internet Cricket Council (ICC) has been urging India to allow offshore companies such as those located in the UK to partner up with casinos in India to get a proper form of internet wagering in place. This is the complete opposite of the USA and the National Football League’s views which strictly want betting banned. This would allow for taxes to be collected, a watchdog for suspicious actives, and lastly allow India’s punters to do what they already do…. to the sum of 8,000 Lakh Rupees.

Funding Option Laws To Consider (FOREX LAW)

Play Online Casino In India

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. Only a few sites take Rupees in which you can fund and withdraw via the same currency so most players from India simply choose to use and electronic wallet. Examples of the most popular ones are Moneybookers, Paypal, and Neteller.

Unless an online betting site specifically blocks players from India, which is pretty rare, you can pretty much play anywhere you want. This puts this law out of business so to speak and for most it’s not an issue! The only thing gamblers from India have to worry about is if the major bookies or betting sites decide they have to leave India in order to get a full fledged license to advertise and operate in India in the future once it is completely regulated and legal.

Conclusion on Online Gambling Laws in India

As you can see there are too many holes in the governmental India betting laws. With a growing middle class, a huge population, and surrounding casino giants looking to make a stand in India it is only a matter of time before online licenses are given out to betting firms offshore to fully allow online betting in India (not that it doesn’t go on now)! For continued updates please following our sister site at www.onlinebetting.in or begin betting at Bet365.com.

Author: Raj Patel (6 year Indian gaming author)
Copyright 2017