Madras HC Sets Aside Tamil Nadu Govt's Ban On Online Rummy, Poker

Tamil Nadu government introduced the legislation in response to a series of suicides reportedly linked to financial losses in online gambling.

The court overturned the Schedule of the Act, which included Rummy and Poker as games of chance in the list of prohibited games.

The Madras High Court rejected the plea to declare the entire Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Act, 2022, as unconstitutional and declared that Rummy and Poker are considered 'games of skill.' The court overturned the Schedule of the Act, which included Rummy and Poker as games of chance in the list of prohibited games. The legislation was introduced by the Tamil Nadu government in response to a series of suicides reportedly linked to financial losses in online gambling.

On Thursday, the first bench comprising Chief Justice S V Gangapurwala and Justice P D Audikesavalu partly allowed the writ petitions filed by All India Gaming Federation and other online gaming companies, which challenged the Act.

According to PTI, a bench said, "We affirm that the impugned Act, as a whole, does not need to be held ultra vires. It is held that the State is competent the legislate to the extend of prohibiting online gambling, specifically games of chance, at the same time, it has got the authority to regulate online games of skill."

Further, the bench said that the interpretation of "online gambling" as per Section 2(i) of the challenged Act should be limited to "games of chance" and should exclude games that involve skill. The bench stated, "the games of rummy and poker are games of cards but are games of skill."

Enacted in April 2022, the TN Prohibition of Online Gaming and Regulation of Online Games Act criminalized engaging in or facilitating games such as poker or rummy for real money. Gaming companies contended that the Tamil Nadu government's authority extends only to the regulation of online games, not their outright prohibition. They further asserted that there is a lack of data substantiating claims of addiction.