Indian President Droupadi Murmu has given her approval to the Online Gaming Bill 2025which means it has become a law. The law prohibits the offering, operation, facilitation, advertisement, endorsement,
and participation in online money games in India. The bill aims to take aim at organisations that deliver fantasy sports and card games where users can invest and risk money. Yesterday, Rajya Sabha passed the bill a just day after it was cleared by the Lok Sabha in the Indian Parliament. Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw presented the bill in Rajya Sabha and called online money games a 'public health risk’.
The bill outlaws all online betting and gambling activities, from online fantasy sports to online gambling (like poker, rummy, and other card games) and online lotteries. The move is set to give a blow to the country's $3.8 billion gaming industry that has drawn the attention of global investors and fostered fantasy sports apps like Dream11, Games24X7, MyTeam11, and Mobile Premier League.
Provisions of India's Online Gaming Bill 2025
The Online Gaming Bill 2025 makes online money gaming a punishable offence, which includes an imprisonment of upto three years and a penalty of upto INR 1 crore. The law also contained a provision where repeated offences could impose 3-5 years' imprisonment and fines upto INR 2 crore.
The All India Gaming Federation (AIGF), Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS), and E-Gaming Federation (EGF) have argued that the move from the government could force more than 400 companies to shut, which can lead to the loss of around 200,000 jobs.
