India has implemented a sweeping ban on online betting, targeting the rapidly expanding sector amid concerns over debt, addiction, and money laundering, with officials warning of underground risks and industry resistance.
India has moved to outlaw online betting, a sweeping step that targets a fast-growing sector long criticised for drawing millions of rupees from households and, in some cases, fuelling addiction and debt. According to reporting by El Comercio, lawmakers approved legislation that bars digital gambling in almost all forms, including virtual poker and fantasy sports platforms that had become popular through the country’s passion for cricket.
The move follows a series of earlier crackdowns. Times of India reported that in November 2023 authorities blocked 122 illegal betting websites and apps, including Mahadev, after enforcement officials alleged the platform’s promoters had amassed about Rs 5,000 crore. A month later, the government expanded the action to 581 applications, among them 174 betting and gambling apps, saying many were linked to money laundering through hawala channels, cryptocurrencies and other illicit routes.
Officials had already laid the groundwork in April 2023, when the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology issued final online gaming rules that explicitly banned wagering and betting on games. Those rules introduced a self-regulatory model for parts of the sector and required identity checks for real-money players, while drawing a line between permitted games and those involving cash stakes. The government said its aim was to protect users and bring order to a market that had developed with limited oversight.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has defended the clampdown as a way to shield families from the social and financial damage linked to online betting, while preserving space for e-sports and educational games. Industry figures, however, argue that a full ban could simply drive users to offshore or underground operators beyond Indian regulators’ reach. That tension between consumer protection and practical enforcement is now at the centre of India’s hard line on digital gambling.
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