Online Gambling Law in India

Updated: 2025

The regulations governing online gambling in India are ambiguous and open to interpretation. If you asked 50 different people about the legality of gambling within the Indian jurisdiction, you would probably get 50 different answers. The purpose of this page is to provide a thorough yet concise overview of the current legal landscape.

Gambling in India is regulated at both the national and state levels. At the national level, gambling is mostly covered by two or three laws, depending on who you ask.

• The Public Gambling Act of 1867
• Prize Competition Act, 1955
• The Information Technology Act of 2000 (maybe)

None of these laws specifically mention online gambling, leaving it in a gray area of the law. Some argue that the 1867 Public Gambling Act (PGA) applies to online gambling because it restricts all forms of "gambling". But even the PGA's applicability to online gambling is arguably shaky, as "gambling" is never defined.

States can also regulate to some extent. Two states, Goa and Sikkim, have authorized a limited number of brick-and-mortar casinos. The other states outlaw most forms of gambling, betting, and poker. The one exception is horse racing, on which the Supreme Court ruled in 1996 that betting is a game of skill.

Although online betting is prohibited, India is a rapidly growing market for online gambling. With a population of 1.2 billion and a growing middle class, India represents a huge potential market for e-gaming operators.

Sites like Bet365 that accept offshore betting are already in India to serve its citizens. At Bet365, the Indian citizen can not only deposit in Indian rupees, but also bet in any currency they choose and play to their heart's content while residing in India. As an offshore site, Bet365 is immune to the Indian laws that govern the operation of gambling websites. And since there is no specific law that prohibits the Indian citizen from placing a bet with an offshore site while living in India, Bet365 and its partners are able to operate in a safe gray area of the law.

The Public Gambling Act of 1867

It was made illegal to operate or be found in a gambling house. Under the Public Gambling Act of 1867, a gambling house is described as "any house, walled enclosure, room, or place where any game of cards, dice, counters, money, or other instruments of gambling is played, or where any person is found to be present for the purpose of gambling, whether for money, wagers, stakes, or otherwise." The penalty for being caught in one was to pay a fine or serve a month in jail.

Gambling has a long and storied history. Where there are people, there are games of chance and skill. From the earliest known activities, our ancestors left evidence of their attempts at gambling. Though artifacts and accounts from long-gone civilizations are scarce, the survival of those few totemic pieces of evidence serve to document the evolution of forms of gambling over the eons.

This law predates the Internet by more than a century, so there is considerable debate as to whether or not it applies to online gambling. Does a site on the World Wide Web count as a "place" where gambling devices are present? That depends on who you ask.

Things are further complicated by a 1976 amendment that added the following text:

In Section 6, for the words "house, walled enclosure, room, or place" wherever they appear, substitute the words - house, room, tent, enclosure, space, vehicle, vessel, or place.

The question remains: does the Internet count as a "vehicle, vessel or place"? The 1976 amendment also predates the Internet, but it could be interpreted to apply to the Internet.

Moreover, the term "gambling" lacks a definitive and universally accepted meaning. The Public Gambling Act of 1867 offers the best semblance of a definition in Section 12:

"Act not to apply to certain games. -The foregoing provisions of this act shall not apply to any game of mere skill, wherever played."