The Tamil Nadu Cabinet on Monday approved an Ordinance to ban online games which involve betting which involve betting money, ANI reported.
The development came days after the Supreme Court on September 10 issued a notice on a petition filed by the Tamil Nadu government challenging the Madras High Court’s decision to strike down an earlier law banning such games, the Mint reported.
In August last year, the Madras High Court had struck down the Tamil Nadu Gaming and Police Laws (Amendment) Act, 2021, according to Live Law. It had held that a ban on online gaming that involves skills is unconstitutional.
Skill-based games require a player to use their cognitive and physical abilities, whereas gambling games are solely based on chance, the court had observed.
The Tamil Nadu government then challenged the High Court verdict in the Supreme Court. In the plea submitted to the top court, the state government argued that the Act qualified as a legislation on the subject of betting, an act which can be regulated.
The government also said that several residents of Tamil Nadu had been spending their earnings and savings on these games.
The MK Stalin-led government had on June 10 formed a committee headed by former Madras High Court judge, Justice K Chandru, to look into the harm caused by games like online rummy and poker, The Hindu Business Line reported.
The panel submitted its report in two weeks. The School Education Department also conducted a survey about the impact of online gaming on children.
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