Courts Can't Halt Online Gaming Act After President's Nod: Centre To Karnataka HC

Last Updated:August 31, 2025, 07:59 IST

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, argued that the law had completed the constitutional process of being passed by Parliament and signed by the President

Karnataka High Court | File Image

The Union government on Saturday told the Karnataka High Court that the judiciary has no authority to block the enforcement of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, after it has secured Presidential assent.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, argued that the law had completed the constitutional process of being passed by Parliament and signed by the President, and therefore its notification was a “constitutional function" that could not be restrained by courts.

“The Act has already been enacted. Once there is Presidential assent, its enforcement cannot be prevented just because one particular individual is unhappy," Mehta told a bench led by Justice BM Shyama Prasad.

The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, was tabled in the Lok Sabha on August 20, cleared by both Houses of Parliament the following day, and received Presidential assent on August 23, as per the Rashtrapati Bhavan website.

When asked if the Centre intended to notify the law soon, Mehta responded, “I don’t have instructions (from the Union government), but it might be notified shortly."

His remarks signal that the ban on real-money online games and their advertisements could be implemented in the near future, despite resistance from the industry.

The court was hearing a petition filed by Head Digital Works, the parent company of online platform A23, which runs rummy and poker games.

The company has challenged the new law, calling it an arbitrary blanket ban on all real-money online games.

Senior advocates Aryama Sundaram and Dhyan Chinappa, appearing for the petitioner, requested the court to put the Act on hold and restrain the government from notifying it until judicial scrutiny is complete.

Mehta, however, reiterated that once Presidential assent had been granted, notification could not be withheld.

The high court has now sought a reply from the Union government by September 8, when the case will be heard again.

In its plea, Head Digital Works said the new legislation reverses the government’s earlier position of distinguishing between skill-based and chance-based games.

It also argued that the law was introduced without adequate stakeholder consultation, causing “severe economic disruption."

The company claimed the ban threatens over two lakh jobs and could wipe out investments worth more than Rs 23,440 crore in the online gaming sector.

Location :

Karnataka, India, India

First Published:

August 31, 2025, 07:59 IST

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