What is the legal stand for Internet gambling in India? Does the
Indian Law allow Internet gambling in India?

Greetings from Google!

You asked for the Indian government's legal stance on Internet
gambling. This question was a rather tricky one to research, due to
the confusion between Native American and Indian gambling.
Nonetheless, I have found a few resources that I believe answers your
question satisfactorily.

According to an article on the Rediff Guide to The Net
(http://www.rediff.com/search/2001/aug/08gamble.htm), an Indian
publication, the short answer to your question would be that Internet
gambling is considered illegal in India. There are, however, no
specific laws prohibiting internet gambling specifically, only
gambling in general.

According to Rediff: "...the legal faculty feels that provisions among
existing laws are enough to curb [internet gambling] in this country."
The existing laws in question are certain provisions in the Indian
Penal Code, but more importantly, the Public Gambling Act of 1867. You
may find more information on the Public Gambling Act on the Additional
links at the end of this answer.

There is also an article on Casinos being planned to be built in the
Delhi area of India that may be of interest to you. It is located at
the address below:
http://www.expresstravelandtourism.com/20010915/travelindia6.htm

According to that article, "the matter for setting up casino in state
would be put up to the state assembly for approval, for which the
state government would have to enact a legislation." So, exceptions
can be granted to the Acts and Provisions barring gambling in India
with the approval of the State Parliament.

So, to summarize, although there are no laws that bar internet
gambling specifically, the official government stance is that the
existing laws governing gambling offline is sufficient enough to curb
Internet gambling as well.


Additional Information:

Good Article on the Indian Public Gambling Act of 1867 from
GamblingMagazine.com
http://www.gamblingmagazine.com/articles/26/26-552.htm


Search Strategy

    "indian penal code" gambling
    "indian penal code" internet gambling
    indian internet gambling -tribal -tribes
    "Public Gambling Act" 1867

As always, if you need any additional clarification, please do not
hesitate to ask for it. I will be more than happy to assist you
further. Thank you for using Google Answers!

Best Regards,
blader-ga

---

Clarification of Answer by blader-ga on 01 May 2002 13:09 PDT

Dear researchforme:

Just a note for the future: if you were unsatisfied with the answer,
it would be a good idea to ask for a clarification first, before
giving a rating. I don't mind though, I still appreciate the question.
=)

As I have mentioned, there are no specific laws that prohibit internet
gambling in India, only gambling in general. The Indian Penal Code is
very vague on gambling, so there is not much in there I can give you.
However, the Public Gaming Act of 1867 explicitly prohibits gambling.
I didn't realize you wanted the full text of these laws, but I can
easily provide them. Here is the link to the full text of the Public
Gaming Act:
http://indiacode.nic.in/cgi/nph-bwcgi/BASIS/indweb/all/actretr/DDW?W%3DSHTITLE%20%20PH%20WORDS%20%271867%27%26M%3D1%26K%3D584%26U%3D1

I hope that helps! Thanks again for your question. =)

Best Regards,
blader-ga

The researcher quoted a few articles that gave me some general
statistics on gambling in India and provided certain links to research
my question, but didnt answer my question completely. I am looking for
the laws as stated in the "Indian Penal code" that prohibit or allow
Internet gambling in India.

There are casinos in Goa hotels - the Goa Renaissance is a good example.

I should have done more research, on how to use this site before
rating your answer. I thank you for your effort and the information
provided. This definetly brings me a step further in my research.
I am not sure if I can change the rating or if it matters, but I shall
try!

Regards

All forms of gambling are not prohibited in India. Lottery is a big
draw. So is horseracing. But the fact is the laws governing the
Internet in India themselves are very nascent. In fact, recently there
is a move to allow betting on horse racing on the Internet
(http://www.rediff.com/search/2002/apr/16bet.htm). As the internet is
still evolving, the laws will take some time catching up. But if you
have some kind of a paypal account, I don't see how you can't gamble
from your desktop in India. Its legalities however, as you rightly
point out are another matter altogether

To some of the answers and comments, I would like to add the
following. While, Internet gambling as, all forms of gambling are
illegal in India. The other relevant issue would be, the foreign
exchange laws. Since for international sites, you need to transact, in
foreign exchange, using your credit card for instance. That would be
an illegal usage of as per FEMA. The foreign exchange laws were very
restrictive, almost draconian some years ago,now with more and more
comfortable exchange positions, they have been liberalised, and small
illegalities are generally ignored.

While, someone has remarked about the casino in Goa, there are also
certain new initiatives under discussion, where, casino ships may pick
up passengers outside Mumbai, and sail outside territorial waters,
before operating the casinos.

As per Gambling laws are concerned, there could be specific state laws
in addition to the central laws - which perhaps allow, Renaissance
Ramada, in Goa to operate, a somewhat restricted casino.