The Lok Sabha has passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, banning unauthorized betting apps and prescribing penalties up to ₹1 crore and three years in jail.
New Delhi : The Lok Sabha on Wednesday passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, aimed at banning and regulating online gaming in India. The bill, introduced by Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, was passed within five minutes of being tabled, amid a noisy protest by the Opposition over the Constitution Amendment Bill. The government pushed it through by a voice vote without any discussion.
The bill, approved by the Union Cabinet just a day earlier, will now be presented in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday. It seeks to curb rampant transactions, fraud, and addiction associated with online gaming platforms. The legislation declares running betting companies online a criminal offense and prescribes penalties of up to ₹1 crore and imprisonment of up to three years for offenders. It also bans advertisements and promotions of unrecognized betting apps or gaming platforms, with provisions for hefty fines.
Under the bill, earnings from unauthorized gaming apps and investments made through banks in such platforms will be barred. Banks will not be permitted to facilitate transactions for unapproved online games. Any individual or company found operating illegal or unrecognized betting or real-money gaming apps will face stringent punishment.
The government has justified the move by arguing that online gaming addiction is misleading the youth, causing financial ruin, depression, and even suicidal tendencies. Officials say the objective is not only to curb harmful gaming but also to encourage domestic, skill-based, and educational gaming applications.
However, industry experts warn that if the bill becomes law, India’s thriving gaming sector could collapse. They estimate that online betting-related transactions in India average around ₹10,000 crore every month, a significant source of revenue for the exchequer through GST collections. With the proposed ban, hundreds of companies could be forced into crisis.
There is also uncertainty over whether popular fantasy sports platforms like Dream11 or My11Circle will fall under the ambit of the ban.
Meanwhile, the Rajya Sabha also passed the Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill on Wednesday, following its passage in the Lok Sabha earlier in the week, as the government continued to clear key legislations despite Opposition uproar.
New Delhi : The Lok Sabha on Wednesday passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, aimed at banning and regulating online gaming in India. The bill, introduced by Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, was passed within five minutes of being tabled, amid a noisy protest by the Opposition over the Constitution Amendment Bill. The government pushed it through by a voice vote without any discussion.
The bill, approved by the Union Cabinet just a day earlier, will now be presented in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday. It seeks to curb rampant transactions, fraud, and addiction associated with online gaming platforms. The legislation declares running betting companies online a criminal offense and prescribes penalties of up to ₹1 crore and imprisonment of up to three years for offenders. It also bans advertisements and promotions of unrecognized betting apps or gaming platforms, with provisions for hefty fines.
Under the bill, earnings from unauthorized gaming apps and investments made through banks in such platforms will be barred. Banks will not be permitted to facilitate transactions for unapproved online games. Any individual or company found operating illegal or unrecognized betting or real-money gaming apps will face stringent punishment.
The government has justified the move by arguing that online gaming addiction is misleading the youth, causing financial ruin, depression, and even suicidal tendencies. Officials say the objective is not only to curb harmful gaming but also to encourage domestic, skill-based, and educational gaming applications.
However, industry experts warn that if the bill becomes law, India’s thriving gaming sector could collapse. They estimate that online betting-related transactions in India average around ₹10,000 crore every month, a significant source of revenue for the exchequer through GST collections. With the proposed ban, hundreds of companies could be forced into crisis.
There is also uncertainty over whether popular fantasy sports platforms like Dream11 or My11Circle will fall under the ambit of the ban.
Meanwhile, the Rajya Sabha also passed the Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill on Wednesday, following its passage in the Lok Sabha earlier in the week, as the government continued to clear key legislations despite Opposition uproar.
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