Chennai: The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly has passed a bill to ban online gambling. Once the bill becomes law, all online games of a gambling nature will be illegal in Tamil Nadu. The new law replaces the Online Gambling Prohibition Ordinance, was passed by the Cabinet on September 26. This was signed by the Governor on October 1.
Any form of advertising or promotion of gambling, including online rummy, will be illegal. The law recommends a prison sentence of up to three years for those who gamble. The law also states that banks and financial institutions should not transfer money to such gaming sites and apps.
More than 20 people, including young people and students, took their lives in Tamil Nadu due to gambling addiction, including online rummy. It is in this situation that the DMK government led by MK Stalin thought about the Online Gambling Ordinance. Then they thought about making a law to enforce the ban.
Meanwhile, the E-Gaming Federation, a body of online gaming investors, has said it will challenge the law in court. Their contention is that online games where skill and proficiency are the criteria cannot be considered as gambling and this has been accepted by the Madras High Court.
