Tamil Nadu bans online gaming

Tamil Nadu government banned online gaming in the state with a fine up to Rs 5,000 and imprisonment of up to six months. Governor Banwarilal Purohit promulgated an ordinance that banned online gaming in the state.

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In the ordinance banning the game, the Governor said that due to online gaming, innocent people, mainly youngsters, are being cheated, and some people have committed suicide.

The state has thus decided to ban online gaming to “avoid such incidents of suicide and protect the innocent people from the evils of online gaming”.

Any form of wagering or betting in cyberspace by using computers or any other communication device, common gaming houses, and any electronic transfer of funds to distribute winnings or prize money has also been banned.

This effectively means that players in the state will not be able to purchase any add-on for the games they play, go to gaming arcades or participate in online gaming tournaments. Some multiplayer games such as Counter-Strike host weekly tournaments with a buy-in of up to Rs 10,000.

By banning online games and gambling, Tamil Nadu joined its neighbours Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in banning some forms of online games and gambling.

The state’s neighbour on the other side, Karnataka, also has been mulling a law to ban online games and gaming.