India Passes Law Banning Online Gambling, Promotes E-Sports and Safe Digital Games

India’s parliament has approved a major law banning online gambling, following government data showing that 450 million people lost a total of $2.3 billion annually on gaming apps.

The ban affects platforms offering card games, poker, and fantasy sports, including India’s popular homegrown fantasy cricket apps. Officials said roughly a third of the country’s population had lost money through online gambling.

The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, passed by both houses of parliament late Thursday, criminalises the offering, promotion, and financing of such games, with penalties of up to five years in prison.

“This legislation is designed to curb addiction, financial ruin, and social distress caused by predatory gaming platforms that thrive on misleading promises of quick wealth,” a government statement said.

India’s gaming sector is one of the largest in the world, but the new law exempts e-sports and educational games, which the government aims to promote as part of the digital economy.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the law will “encourage e-sports and online social games” while protecting society from the harmful effects of online money games.

Industry groups had called for regulation and taxation rather than a blanket ban, warning it could push players to illegal offshore platforms. Supporters of the law, however, argue that the social costs of online gambling are too high.

Officials cited widespread financial distress, addiction, and even suicide linked to online gambling, as well as associations with fraud, money laundering, and terrorism financing.

Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw emphasised that the law distinguishes between online “social” games and money-based gambling.

“It encourages e-sports, which are organised competitive video games, and promotes safe online social and educational games,” a government briefing note said.

“It separates constructive digital recreation from betting, gambling, and fantasy money games that exploit users with false promises of profit.”