The Unclear Legal Status of Online Poker**
India is a country with a rich cultural heritage and a growing online gaming industry. However, when it comes to online poker, the legal landscape is complex and unclear. In 1970 and Orissa (Prevention of) Gambling Act, 1955 and Telangana State Gaming (Amendment) Ordinance and High Court Judgment in Gujarat, 2017 forbids games with real money stakes. These laws do not create an exception for games of skill and categorize them under gambling. As a result, the residents of Assam, Odisha, Telangana, and Gujarat are prohibited from playing online poker.
The Favorable Prospects
On the other hand, states like Sikkim and Nagaland have enforced specialized online gaming laws to legitimize the industry. Not only that, if you’re an online gaming license in Nagaland, you can use this permission to access a pan-Indian market, given if ‘games of skill’ are permitted in those states. That’s good news for you that to date no other game has specifically received such a judicial nod.
The KPMG Report
According to the KPMG report, the Indian gaming industry is estimated at around $60 billion per year with the figure expected to rise with the coming of online gaming. When asked about the feasibility of common law to help in the progression of changing trends, Law Commission Chairman Balbir Singh Chauhan pointed out positively that should everything go in the way of legalising the game, the government could be in to earn as much as $2.6 billion per year in tax revenue.
Gambling Laws
Gambling in India is legal only in the following states: Goa, Daman, Sikkim, and Nagaland. Along with that, other categories such as horse racing and lottery are legal in a few other states. While some states have formally allowed games which require skill, others nonetheless have especially prohibited and tabooed them in all forms.
The Unfavorable
Where states like Nagaland gave the first license for online Poker, and Calcutta High Court dismissed Poker from being tried under gambling laws, states like Telangana have pushed to make any form of online betting illegal, including Poker. The State Government issued decrees which made online betting in games like Poker and Rummy illegal. After a lot of court proceedings, with arguments made by both sides debating the legality and Rights, the online status of Poker in the State was revoked. Soon after, a bill was passed in the legislative council amending the Telangana Gaming Act of 1974 backed by all the major political parties, which has now left room for other States to also follow suit should they choose to.
Is Poker a Game of Skill?
Poker requires psychological skills, knowledge of statistics & probability and strategizing skill and hence is often referred to as a game of skills and not the game of chance. Let’s take a look at the mechanism of the game. A Poker game begins with each player putting down money allocated for betting. Then they are dealt cards from a standard 52-card deck to make the best hand at the table. During this process each player keeps their cards hidden, each player places bets on the strength of his/her cards. In the end, all the cards are revealed when the round is over. The player with the best hand wins the round along with the money that was bet during that round. And this continues in each round.
At present, India’s policy related to online poker is unclear. There are many loopholes in the laws, and no transparent nation-wide system can be ascertained. Several court judgments, several petitions have been filed over the years, but there’s no one way out. And, this is an ongoing process with litigations pending at various forums.
Current Status
Currently, all the poker websites in India allow players from all states and union territories except Gujarat, Assam, Odisha, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Telangana due to the peculiar wording of gaming legislation in these states.