Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi on Wenesday, March 8, returned the online gambling Bill to the state government, four months and 11 days after it was sent to him for his assent. The Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Bill, 2022 intends to ban online gambling in Tamil Nadu. According to reports, Ravi has asked the state government to furnish additional information and make certain changes to the bill.
The Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Bill, 2022 was passed in the Assembly on October 19, 2022. Prior to that, on October 1, Governor Ravi had given his assent to an ordinance banning online gambling in the state. However, the ordinance lapsed on November 27, as the Governor delayed approving it.
It must be noted that representatives of the E-Gaming Federation (EGF) met Governor Ravi at Chennai’s Raj Bhavan on December 5, 2022, even as the state government awaited his assent on a Bill regulating online games. The agenda of the meeting remained unclear as the Raj Bhavan did not share any official information on the Governor’s meeting with representatives of the online gaming industry.
This is the second attempt by the Tamil Nadu government to impose a ban on online gambling including card games such as poker. An older law that was enacted by the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government was quashed by Madras High Court obesrving it as unconstitutional. On August 3, 2021, former Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthil Kumar Ramamoorthy observed that such a ban, as per the proposed amendment of The Tamil Nadu Gaming Act, would be unconstitutional and in violation of Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India (right to practice any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business).
In 2021, after the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) assumed office, a decision to ban online gambling and regulate online gaming was taken and a committee was constituted, led by retired Madras High Court judge Justice K Chandru to study the adverse effects of online gambling. The committee submitted its report to the Chief Minister on June 27, 2022, and the report was taken up for discussion by the state Cabinet on September 26. The 71-page report strongly advised the government to enact fresh legislation to regulate online games. After considering the recommendations, the Tamil Nadu government decided to bring an ordinance banning online gambling and regulating online games.
Several incidents of self-harm have been reported in Tamil Nadu due to financial losses in online gambling. According to Kalaignar News, at least 44 people have died after losing huge amounts of money on games such as online rummy. On multiple occasions, the state government and leaders from various political parties have emphasised the need for a law to ban online gambling. They have even sought an explanation from RN Ravi regarding the delay in giving his assent to the Bill.