Thread by @LiveLawIndia

#MadrasHighCourt to hear today pleas filed by All India Gaming Federation and Gameskraft Technologies Pvt Ltd challenging the Tamil Nadu law prohibiting online gambling and regulating online games in the State.
#onlinegambling
#onlinegaming

The bench of Acting Chief Justice T Raja and Justice Bharatha Chakravarthy will be hearing the pleas filed by the companies challenging the validity of the act and seeking a stay on its operation.
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#onlinegambling
#onlinegaming

Senior Counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi appearing for one of the online rummy companies says that the Act is unconstitutional. Says that there is a watershed distinction between games of chance and skill.
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Singhvi- Nothing can be 100% skill. Even in the game of bridge, there is a matter of chance on which card you get. Courts have held that when you have chance and skill, you have to look at predominance
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Singhvi- Rummy is a game of skill. Stakes don't convert a game of skill into that of chance. The State are not competent to pass laws except in cases of games of chance
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ACJ Raja- There have been deaths and families running into penury. Then what is wrong with the state enacting a law.
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Singhvi- It is a case of disproportionate overbridge. Every evil is being attributed to rummy. There are social evils to drinking and lottery. But none of the States are banning that.
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Singhvi- In the North, in our Diwali parties even we play games like rummy.
ACJ T Raja: Well, here we do not play rummy because we are aware of the nuisance of rummy.
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ACJ Raja - Dr Singhvi, I'll surprise you, but in my village, just 20 kms away from Madurai, there's no drinking, no smoking. No alcohol or tobacco is sold. The Gandhi museum has adopted this village as a model village.
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Singhvi- We are talking about data. There are so many health evils and social evils to drinking and lottery. But these are not being banned. Why specifically rummy.
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ACJ Raja - You should understand that rummy is not fully banned. Only online rummy is banned. There is a difference between sitting in my home and playing rummy and playing it online. We don't know what's happening online.
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Justice Bharatha Chakravarthy- Who shuffles the cards in online rummy?
Singhvi- There's an algorithm. In fact, online game is much more safer than the physical game.
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#onlinegaming

Singhvi- If the activity itself is acceptable, making it online will not make it unacceptable. Online gaming makes it much more regulatable, controllable. We can monitor what is happening.
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Singhvi-The Union Government has already brought in rules under the IT Act to deal with online games. The states thus do not have any power on the issue.
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#onlinegaming

Senior Counsel Aryama Sundaram makes submission for All India Gaming Federation. Says that after #madrashc struck down an earlier amendment to the TN Gaming Act, the state is now trying to bring in a new act with same provisions.
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#onlinegaming

Sundaram - The madras hc has held that a game of skill is not gambling. Even if there is incidental wagering. If it is actually betting and gambling, then it must be on chance, should not involve skill.
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Sundaram- There is no diff between cyberspace and physical.
ACJ Raja - Art 19 gives freedom of movement. But to reduce pollution, some states have brought in the odd/even scheme. It's not a prohibition, it's a regulation. The govt is doing something similar.
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Sundaram concludes his arguments by saying that all the concerns regarding online gaming had been addressed by the central government rules and the state has no authority to have a parallel legislation on the same.
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Senior Counsel Kapil Sibal, appearing for the State of TN says that there is no concept of occupied field with respect to matters in List 1 and List 2. Says that under Entry 34 List 2, it is the State government that has power to make laws on betting and gambling
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Sibal- The Centre can make intermediary guidelines. State has authority to make laws. So it is the Union which is incompetent to make the laws and not the State as contended by the petitioners
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#onlinegaming

Sibal- The petitioners have relied on the judgement in Sathyanarayana case. In that case, the court in fact said that though Rummy is a game of skill, if it involves gambling or brings in revenue to the owner of clubhouse, it can be prosecuted
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#onlinegaming

Sibal - The online company's sole objective is to get money through the games..It is a matter of private interest vs. public interest. These platforms are there to make money and destroy the lives of family.
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#onlinegaming