TN ban cannot apply to games of skill, rules HC

'Online rummy, poker can't be seen in the same manner as gambling'

- Shouvik Das

Online rummy and poker are legal again in Tamil Nadu, with the Madras high court ruling that a state law passed last year curbing online games will not apply to these “games of skill".

While the state’s Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Act, 2022, remains valid in terms of time, age limit and spending restrictions, it cannot be used to ban online titles of rummy and poker, the court said. These titles have been referred to as games of skill, and are seen under a different lens away from betting and gambling, the court ruled.

Previous laws, made along similar lines in both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, were struck down by the respective state high courts. The states then moved the Supreme Court, where these cases are nearing verdict.