Gambling in India
Gambling in India is heavily restricted. The Public Gambling Act of 1867 prohibits running or being in charge of a public gaming house. The penalty for breaking this law is a fine of 200 or imprisonment of up to 3 months. Additionally, this Act prohibits visiting gambling houses. A fine of Rs 100 or imprisonment of up to one month is the penalty.[1] The Information Technology Act 2000 regulates cyber activities in India and prohibits publication or transmission of information that can corrupt people. This includes online gambling and the punishment for such activities is much more serious than for offline gambling operations – the fine is Rs 100,000 or imprisonment up to 5 years.[2]
Despite the existing prohibitive legislation, there is extensive illegal gambling throughout the country. The Indian gambling market is estimated to be worth US$60 billion per year, of which about half is illegally bet.[3] According to the Indian National Newspaper, the Chief Executive officer for the International Cricket Council (ICC) said he was in favour of legalizing sports betting. He believes the illegal funds profited are through underground bookies that used the money to fund terrorism and drugs.[4]
Only two states allow casino gambling, Goa and Sikkim.[5] There is one casino in Sikkim and 12 in Goa, of which seven are land based and five are floating casinos that operate on the Mandovi River.
Other than lotteries, legal gambling in India is limited to betting on horse racing.
Online gambling is in its infancy in India, but Sikkim planned to offer three online gambling licences in 2010. This failed despite India being the most sought out country for online gambling.[6] Sikkim also permits an online lottery, operated by Playwin, which takes bets from players throughout India. It is expected that other states will follow Sikkim shortly, thereby opening up a major online gambling market throughout India.[citation needed][7]
In May 2011 India passed the Federal Information Technology Act which tries to put a stranglehold on internet gambling. This new act, which covers gambling sites, holds the Internet Service Providers responsible for blocking offshore betting sites. Despite various laws India has placed, offshore companies still target India, and players from India continue to bet online.[8]
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ The Public Gambling Act, 1867
- ^ Wanna bet?
- ^ Thompson, James (27 October 2009). "Betfair and William Hill target India". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/betfair-and-william-hill-target-india-1810025.html. Retrieved 28 October 2009.
- ^ "Sports Betting Favoured by ICC". CasinoOnline.net.in. http://www.casinoonline.net.in/laws. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
- ^ Patil, Ajit (28 May 2009). "Casinos in India". India Bet. http://www.indiabet.com/indian-betting/casinos-in-india.html. Retrieved 28 October 2009.
- ^ Sanjay, Roy (27 October 2009). "Indian online gambling market set to open up". India Bet. http://www.indiabet.com/indian-betting/indian-online-gambling-market-set-to-open-up.html. Retrieved 28 October 2009.
- ^ "GPWA Magazine". http://www.gpwa.org.
- ^ Shriver, Roger. "Online Betting in India: Onlinebetting.com". Author. http://www.onlinebetting.com/india. Retrieved 17 July 2011.
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