People have played various indoor and outdoor games for centuries, including gambling. Games that offer cash-winning opportunities are varied and include classic games like Solitaire and Spider Solitaire or modern-day games like 8-ball Pool, Bowling, or fantasy sports games. From a sentimental and cultural standpoint, gambling has always been viewed as a vice and labeled as an illegal and unethical activity in India. While gambling is rightly so and remains illegal in the country, real money gaming is wrongly associated with gambling.
However, just because gamers can earn money by playing fantasy cricket or football, Rummy, Ludo or Solitaire doesn’t mean they are gambling online. It is essential to understand the acceptable line difference between gambling and skill-based gaming in India to understand the legal aspect of real money gaming.
Gambling Versus Skill-Based Games: The Difference
In real money games, coins or chips are the first elements. Players need to purchase those to play the game. After the purchase is complete, players can begin playing the game of their choice. However, this isn’t applicable across all online gaming platforms. There are also online platforms where players need to give an entry fee to enter tournaments to win cash. For instance, suppose you have decided to play online Ludo and earn money. You need to check the ongoing tournaments and participate by paying a nominal entry fee. Then, if you can beat all the other participants and dominate the leaderboard, you will get cash rewards. To learn more, click https://www.mpl.live/ludo.
Furthermore, these real money games are not based purely on chance or luck. These games are skill-based games that help gamers hone their skills and learn something new as they play the game. For example, players can learn the art of concentration and focus, enjoy improved hand-eye coordination, etc. Also, these games cannot be played purely by chance. Players need to strategize and implement rational thinking to beat their opponents. For instance, suppose you are playing Rummy, and you need to meld thirteen cards to create a set, beat your opponents and win cash prizes. You cannot meld thirteen cards if you are not observant of what your opponent picks up and discards. Additionally, you need to have excellent memory power and need to analytically think of ways to turn your bad hand into a good one. The only element of luck in such games is when the cards are being dealt, but in games like Solitaire, all players are dealt the same cards, and it depends on the players how they strategize to create relevant sequences.
On the other hand, gambling is all about pure luck and chance. When you’re gambling, you put something of value at stake with an uncertain outcome hoping that you will gain something valuable. You can only hope you win the round, and if you don’t, you end up losing a lot of money.
Therefore, skill-based games like real money gaming mustn’t be confused with gambling. The former requires a fixed course of action, skills, and strategies to beat opponents and teams.
Is Real Money Gaming Legal Or Not In India?
The Public Gambling Act 1867 prohibits gambling in India, but skill games are excluded from its purview. Furthermore, several judicial decisions have identified fantasy sports and card games like Rummy as skill-based games in the past few years. Therefore, platforms offering such games can operate legally in most Indian states.
By the law, games of skill are those games that need human knowledge and skills to win the game. As explained before, these games are not pure luck or chance. Gamers need to work hard to achieve the objective and beat the opponents.
However, there continue to be some states in India that don’t allow skill-based games, along with gambling and betting. Recently, Karnataka has lifted its ban, saying they must create laws to impose restrictions on gambling but leave fantasy games and other skill-based games out.
With this ruling, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are the only two states that have prohibited games played for stakes, including those requiring skills.
Therefore, real money gaming is legal in India, leaving a few states that have prohibited such games outright. If you are a resident of those states, you can enjoy practice leagues that are games played for free. These games don’t offer any rewards, but they are played in the same concept as the cash-winning tournaments.
The Bottom Line
Gambling is prohibited in India, and it has an illegal status, but games of skill are not banned in the country. Sadly, games of skill and gambling have been used interchangeably for far too long, and it is high time that people understood the difference. Not all games played for stakes and to earn money are a form of gambling because it is impossible to win those games without applying human knowledge and skills. On the other hand, gambling is wholly based on chance or luck. Gamblers wager bets hoping they will get something valuable in return, but there’s no guarantee, and nothing is in control of the punter. After the wager has been set, the wheels of luck are in motion.
Real money gaming includes classic card games and arcade games to fantasy sports. These games need immense skills to go ahead of the other teams and score the highest to earn money. These games are legal in India, except a few Indian states have yet to legalize them.
So, before you play real money gaming, check the rules and regulations of your state regarding skill-based games. If that checks out, you can go ahead and start playing your favorite games.
