In a significant ruling, the Allahabad High Court has said that poker and rummy are games of skill and do not fall under the purview of gambling.
Poker companies and players in India have long been at loggerheads over the differing rules pertaining to the sport in different states. With another judgment supporting the game, more could follow suit.
The current judgement, passed by Justice Shekhar B Saraf and Justice Manjive Shukla on Wednesday, was on a petition filed by Dm Gaming Private Limited. The petition was filed after the Deputy Commissioner of Police, City Commissionerate of Agra, denied the company permission to operate poker and rummy as a gaming unit on January 24, 2024.
The courts also relied on two previous orders, Junglee Games India Private Limited Vs. State of Tamil Nadu (W.P. No. 18022 of 2020) and State of Andhra Pradesh Vs. K.S. Sathyanarayana AIR 1968 SC 825 as precedents.
Authorities not giving permission to operate poker gaming units is pretty rare in India, with more and more companies setting up poker series. However, it is not known whether the defendants were to set up small poker games or a full-fledged series.
In court, the petitioner argued that the sole presumption behind the denial of permission was that these games might disturb public peace and harmony or be considered gambling.
Gambling is illegal all over India, and several individuals have been booked and arrested just for that. Live poker games are legal in some states and banned in others. Goa, probably the most popular poker destination in India, allows only offshore poker games. However, online poker is becoming pretty famous among the younger crowd. The court ruling quickly went viral, and the response opinion about this was positive.
One of them was Roland Landers, the CEO of All Indian Gaming Federation, who posted about the judgement on his social handle. AIGF is an apex industry body for online skill gaming in India and was established in May 2016. It strives to facilitate recognition for the online skill gaming industry in India