SC to hear PIL seeking ban on online gambling posing as e-sports in India

New Delhi: The Supreme Court is set to hear a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by the Centre for Accountability and Systemic Change (CASC) on Friday, seeking directions to the Centre to prohibit online gambling and betting platforms operating under the guise of social and e-sports games.

A bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran acknowledged submissions from lawyer Virag Gupta, representing CASC, and agreed to hear the plea on 17 October.

The petition requests that the union ministries of Electronics and Information Technology, Information and Broadcasting, Finance, and Youth Affairs and Sports interpret provisions of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 alongside state legislation, to bar online gambling disguised as gaming. 

The petition, filed on October 13 through advocates Virag Gupta and Rupali Panwar, names six respondents, including four union ministries and app store operators Apple Inc. and Google India.

Represented by former Uttar Pradesh DGP Vikram Singh and Shourya Tiwari, CASC urged the court to direct authorities to curb the growth of betting applications, which they say are causing widespread social and economic harm.

“Betting and gambling is regarded as an unlawful activity in the majority of the states in India. Several cases are contested in high courts wherein affidavits were filed by the government and gaming platforms. Upon analysing the same it is reported that more than 65 crore persons are playing such games creating annual business of more than Rs 1.8 lac crores for these platforms in India,” the PIL said.

“Around half of the Indian population is involved in playing online games which is adversely impacting society, economy and national security. Devastating impact of online betting and gambling are endorsed in the objectives of newly passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025. As per the IT Minister’s speech in Parliament, the Bill was introduced to ensure the welfare of society and to prevent the serious evil that is creeping into society,” it added.

The petitioners described the proliferation of such platforms as a “national crisis,” affecting half of India’s population and causing financial distress, mental health issues, and instances of suicide. The PIL requests a nationwide ban on online gambling and betting platforms posing as e-sports or social games.

It also seeks blocking orders under Section 69A of the IT Act, directions to the RBI, NPCI, and UPI platforms to stop monetary transactions involving unregistered gaming apps, and investigation into offshore companies allegedly owing over Rs 2 lakh crore in taxes.

The PIL additionally calls for safeguards for minors whose data has already been collected by online gaming companies.

“Top cricketers and film stars are endorsing such unlawful games leading to cyber frauds, addiction, mental health disorder and suicides. 

As per Union IT Minister, ‘The fraud and cheating algorithms are such that it's impossible to tell who is playing with whom… algorithms are opaque algorithms…defeat is certain money laundering is taking place…’,” the petition said.