SC Notice To Centre After Plea Claims 2,000 Betting Apps Continue To Operate

Nearly 2,000 betting and gambling apps continue to operate in India despite a new law intended to regulate online betting and gaming, a petitioner told the Supreme Court.

The plea alleges ambiguity in enforcing the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, which was passed to curb such platforms but has not yet been brought into force.

A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan issued a notice to the Centre and asked it to file a response. The petition has been tagged along with a batch of cases challenging the Online Gaming Act.

"When this matter was first taken up, we requested counsel for the Centre to assist us," the court noted. The Union government informed the bench that the relief sought is already covered under the new legislation, though the law is yet to be operationalised.

The petitioner – an NGO – argued that about 2,000 betting and gambling apps are still functional, and urged the court to direct the government to take immediate action in the larger public interest, particularly to protect the youth.

The writ petition seeks a harmonious interpretation of the new Online Gaming Act and state laws so that online gambling and betting platforms, often presented as social gaming or e-sports, can be prohibited.

The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, which proposes the setting up of OGAI, has already been notified. It also has provisions to have members from other ministries and is currently open for public consultation till Oct. 31.

The law was prompted by an estimated Rs 20,000 crore losses borne by players annually and a rising tide of social distress linked to it, government sources told NDTV Profit.

Widespread social distress, including family violence, bankruptcies, and even suicides, along with strong representations from Members of Parliament on the matter, prompted the Centre to bring forward this Act, they added.