TN Governor returns online gambling ban bill citing lack of 'legislative competence'

CHENNAI: After dilly-dallying for more than four months, Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi has returned the bill 'Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gaming and Regulation of Online Games Act, 2022' saying it lacks legislative competence.

The bill was passed by the state assembly on October 19, 2022, after it was introduced and moved by Law minister S Raghupathi. Earlier, the Tamil Nadu governor promulgated the ordinance to ban gambling and regulate online games on October 1. The ordinance lapsed on Nov 27, 2022.

The new Act would result in the state setting up an online gaming authority to regulate online games and any local operator will have to get a certificate of registration while providing the services online.

"The bill will now be examined by the legislature and it will be sent back to the governor if it is deemed fit," official sources told The New Indian Express.

Interestingly, this comes after the governor had raised three questions last year based on the Madras High Court order that struck down the previous law that banned online gambling.

He then stated that the bill fails to reflect the observations made by the High Court. The governor had said that there is no differentiation made between the game of chance and the game of skills and the bill aims for a total ban. This goes against Article 19 (1) (g) of the Constitution. The governor also noted that the high court had said the ban can only be proportional to the impact and there can't be a blanket ban.

The government had then clarified through a letter that the bill distinguished between the game of chance and skill and only online gambling has been banned. The bill does not impose a total ban. Hence it sticks to the doctrine of proportionality.

The governor had also cited the Madras High Court that said skill-based games are not covered under the 'Betting and Gambling' entry in the state list under schedule 7 of the Constitution. This is not taken into consideration when drafting this bill, he had said.

The state clarified that the entry 'Betting and Gambling' does cover online gambling. In offline games, the person knows the opponent. However, in online games, the person is playing against a computer code written by the game developer. This leads to higher chances of cheating and swindling and so the bill aims to ban such online gambling.

The state has clarified that the bill is in conformity with the Constitution. It deals with matters involving betting and gambling, public order, public health and theatres and dramatic performances. Under the seventh schedule, these matters come under the state list.