India bans online gambling in Andhra Pradesh

Online gambling operators could face prison following the decision.

India.- Authorities in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh have taken a decision to ban online gambling.

In India the national government allows individual states to regulate gambling. At a cabinet meeting yesterday, the state approved an amendment to the 1974 Gaming Act to establish a ban.

Under the amendment, online gambling operators could face a year in prison, which could rise to two years for repeat offenders. Players could be jailed for up to six months.

According to local media reports, chief minister Yeduguri Sandinti Jaganmohan Reddy said the decision had been taken because authorities believed online gambling on popular games such as rummy and poker was becoming a vice and was harmful to young people.

A court ruling in another state in India recently called for the regulation of online gambling as a way to attract investment.