Online Gaming Platforms With Game of Chance Treated as Illegal, MoS IT Says

Betting and playing are illegal in most components of the nation and on-line gaming platforms are handled as unlawful when sport of probability is concerned in these platforms, Parliament was knowledgeable on Wednesday. Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar, in a written reply within the Lok Sabha, mentioned all types of playing and betting come below the purview of state governments they usually have enacted legal guidelines to cope with the identical inside their jurisdiction below List-II of the Seventh Schedule of the Indian Constitution.

“Betting and gambling is illegal in most parts of the country. Online gaming platforms are intermediaries and they have to follow the due diligence as prescribed in the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000 and the Rules thereunder.

“MeitY regulates all of the intermediaries as per the IT Act and the Rules therein. Online gaming platforms are handled as unlawful when sport of probability is concerned in these platforms,” the minister said.

In response to a question on steps being taken by the government to prevent crimes occurring due to spread of online gambling and betting, Chandrasekhar said ‘police’ and ‘public order’ are state subjects and states and union territories are primarily responsible for the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of crimes through their Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs).

“The Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) at Centre and States take applicable authorized motion as per provisions of regulation and when applicable,” the minister said.

Last month, the Battlegrounds Mobile India, or BGMI, was reportedly removed from the Google Play store and Apple’s App Store following a government order. Google confirmed that it received a government order directing it to delist the popular online game, which is yet to be reinstated on both platforms.