Over the years, the Google Play store has been rejecting the most real-money betting apps, but this year, they’ve decided to approve several casinos and sports betting site apps around the world, but not in India. Currently, most cell phone company app stores in India have banned gambling and sports betting apps in accordance with gambling laws. Google in particular has revised their rules in regards to cash betting apps in response to national laws on gambling.
The technology giant has now added 15 countries to the list where the citizens will be allowed to download and use mobile casinos and sports betting apps. However, as India’s federal government hasn’t been able to fix laws regarding the legality of online gambling, Google has left India out. India’s laws around online gambling differ from state to state, but federal laws made against gambling were written in the 1800s and they are yet to be updated.
The federal government has left it to individual state bodies to make regulations regarding gambling and unfortunately, many have failed to do so. Sports betting has a large history as Indians have often shown interest in betting on cricket and horse racing for centuries. Currently, betting sites in India operate somewhat legally – there are licensed European and American bookie websites that citizens can use in states where sports betting has been left unregulated.
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According to The Hindu, “In India, gambling games have received scrutiny due to which multiple states have banned these apps. Recently, Paytm and Paytm First Games were temporarily blocked for allegedly allowing sports betting and daily fantasy sports.”
At the same time, the gambling industry in India can be estimated to be having a turnover of $100 billion each year, according to some sources. In countries where gambling is legal, they can regulate and tax companies, adding to their overall GDP. This is not the case in India. The only states in India to make laws allowing gambling and sports betting are Goa, Daman, and Sikkim.
Most recently, the state of Tamil Nadu has also made some laws in order to regulate gambling and although many thought they would finally legalize it, the government went the other way, banning gambling instead. Although the recent news from Tamil Nadu was not great for gambling fans, there is still hope that the country may finally revisit its laws and legalize sports betting permanently.
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Considering the shape of the economy after the recent pandemic, more government officials are now talking about legalizing gambling as a way to improve the overall GDP.
A recent survey found that 40 percent of India’s internet users say they specifically use the internet for sports betting. Going by this information, Minister of State for Finance and former president of the Board of Crick Control, Anurag Thakur has shared his desire to push the rest of his colleagues into legalizing sports betting, although he has a different reason for doing so.
Thakur is concerned with match-fixing, which can easily be fixed through regulation. “Betting can be an effective tool to curb match-fixing, which is why we need to consider the possibilities of legalizing it.”
Former BCCI president said it would help in “monitoring people allegedly involved in fixing” and contain “unholy and corrupt” practices such as match-fixing, apart from contributions in the tax revenue. Thakur was reportedly responding to a suggestion by Nilesh Shah, managing director of Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company and part-time member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister.
As India’s gambling laws change, citizens may finally be able to catch up with the rest of the world.
