Ban on online gaming: The saga continues Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Ordinance, 2022
By Ayush Sharma
The State of Tamil Nadu has recently promulgated an Ordinance Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Ordinance, 2022 for the regulation of online gaming in the State. The Ordinance prohibits online gambling and playing of online games of chance with money or other stakes. The State government through a Schedule under the Ordinance has also identified ‘rummy’ and ‘poker’ as games of chance, thereby prohibiting the individuals or companies from offering or playing the said games. The article in this regard highlights that various judicial forums have earlier held rummy and poker as a game of skill. The author also notes that the State government has considered factors like randomness involved in the online games and manipulation through artificial intelligence but failed to consider that, there is no vested interest of the organizers involved in the game as all the winnings go to the players and not to the organizer. He concludes by stating that the stake holders may challenge the Ordinance on the issue of reasonability, arbitrary nature and violation of established principles of the Courts, and hence it will be on the courts to decide the future of this Ordinance…
Notifications and Circulars
- Companies (Corporate Social Responsibility Policy) Rules, 2014 amended
- IBBI (Insolvency Professionals) Regulations, 2016 amended
- Effective date for Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Amendment Rules, 2022 extended
- Information Technology Act, 2000 – First Schedule revised
- Labelling requirement for breads notified – Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Second Amendment Regulations, 2022 notified
- Nomination of Director – Legal Metrology (General) Amendment Rules, 2022 notified
- Guidelines for preferential issue and institutional placement of units by listed InvITs and REITs revised
- Commercial Paper by listed InvITs and REITs – Issue and listing
- Extant Regulatory Framework for the Asset Reconstruction Companies introduced
- Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups notified
Ratio decidendi
- Award by a unilaterally appointed arbitrator is non-est – Same not a bar to maintainability of a petition filed subsequently under Arbitration Section 11 – Delhi High Court
- Default of instalment of Settlement Agreement is not ‘operational debt’ – NCLAT
- National Company Law Tribunal cannot refer to arbitration when exercising jurisdiction under IBC Sections 7, 9, and 10 – NCLAT
News Nuggets
- Arbitral Tribunal to provide rationale for determination of interest rate in the award
- Arbitration – Limitation for invoking a legal remedy cannot be extended even by consent
- Period of limitation for referring dispute to arbitration commences only after failure of pre-arbitration mechanism
- No bar against initiating CIRP against two Corporate Debtors but same amount cannot be realised from both
- Indemnity of obligations under an agreement is not a ‘financial debt’ under IBC
- Electricity being essential for preservation of value of Corporate Debtor, dues for the same must be paid by Resolution Professional during CIRP
- No ‘insider trading’ if transaction surely likely to result in loss
- Mandatory registration for sale or distribution of medical devices including in vitro diagnostic medical devices
- Courts cannot interfere with the terms of a tender
