Indian Andhra Pradesh Cabinet Bans Online Gambling and Video Games

The Andhra Pradesh Cabinet in India has flexed its muscle in the last few weeks, choosing to not only ban more than 117 online and mobile video games, including the incredibly popular PUBG mobile by TenCent but also laying down the law when it comes to online casino games and betting.

 Protectors of the Children

While the argument against video games had more to do with the tension between China and India, the stance on the blanket ban of online gambling, with particular focus on Rummy and Poker, was the protection of their youth.

The Cabinet voted to allow amendments to the AP Gaming Act–1974 which will allow for them to not only ban the games but also pursue stringent charges for non-compliance which will include fines and even jail time.

The amended Gaming Act will allow the local authorities to imprison first-time offenders for 6 months, with the required jail time jumping to as much 2 years for repeat offenders.

 Blaming Economic Strain

Andhra Pradesh state president Somu Veerraju went to include the recent financial hardships brought on by the pandemic as another reason for the ban of online gambling.

He went to great pains to reiterate his stance that playing online rummy is a danger to public health and risks public funds by tweeting:

“In May 2020, I brought to the notice of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy about the bad changes in the thinking of the general public due to online gambling and the misappropriation of public funds.”

The ongoing, proven, financial abuses of mobile video games which target children and at-risk adults through loot boxes and microtransactions are never mentioned in this crackdown on abusive behaviours. The reason for video game blocks is based solely on data protection as only Chinese published games were included in the ban.

Anant Negi, a tech and gaming enthusiast, went so far as to say as to claim that had PUBG Mobile been released by South Korea, as its pc counterpart is, it would have avoided the ban.

 No Long Arm of the Law

While it is true that these rulings are law in the state of Andhra Pradesh India has no centralised oversight committee for gambling. This means that each of the country’s 29 states is free to create and enforce their own gambling laws.

Unfortunately, this recent scenario has begun a conversation around installing a centralised body which would most likely be overseen by India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. Somu Veerraju is a member of this party and has proven to be openly hostile to the gambling industry.