India poker case to resume in November
Supreme Court suspends hearing on landmark case until 12 November to give time for consultation into current laws
The case set to decide on the legality of poker in India has been suspended until mid-November in order to enable the government to carry out a consultation into the implications of potential regulatory reform.
The country’s Supreme Court has been tasked with passing judgment on whether card games such as poker and rummy are determined by chance and therefore constitute gambling, or are based on ‘mere skill’ and should be deemed legal.
However, following a short hearing late last week, the case has now been adjourned until 12 November while the government looks at how change to current laws would impact wider constitutional matters.
If the Court was to judge card games of skill for stakes to be legal, the country would implement uniform regulations across the country which would then supersede recent court judgments made at a state level.
The case was brought by a number of Indian operators after the Madras High Court found the offer of card games for stakes to be an illegal form of gambling, despite the activity having been permitted by other state courts such as the Karnataka High Court.
Speaking to eGaming Review about the recent development, George Oborne, managing director at India Bet, said the operators in the country were optimistic about the extended case.
“This adjournment suggests that gaming regulation is being properly considered by the government and the feeling in Delhi is that come November the Rummy companies will be receiving a positive verdict,” Oborne said.
Should the Supreme Court judge rule in favour of poker as a skill game, the door to the market could swing open for overseas operators.
In August, Amaya CEO David Baazov said India was now on the company’s radar following its $4.9bn acquisition of PokerStars’ parent company Rational Group earlier this month.