Recently, the response of the State Government of Karnataka was sought by the Karnataka High Court regarding the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking ban on the online betting and gambling till apt regulations and laws are framed.
The petitioner in the said petition filed a writ of Mandamus:
“Issue a Writ of Mandamus or any other Writ or Order or Direction of a like nature and direct the Respondents No.1 State of Karnataka to ban all forms of Online Gambling and Online Betting of any nature until unless an appropriate regulatory regime is established and regulations are framed by Respondent regulating the functions and activities of all forms of Online Gambling and Online Betting”.
The plea further mentioned that:
“There is no regulatory body or governmental structure to regulate and monitor online gambling and betting. As a result, the vulnerable sections of society, particularly the youth, adolescents and even children are prone to hazardous and predatory situation amidst this pandemic.”
It was also highlighted that various High Courts, particularly, the Hon’ble High Courts of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu have directed their respective jurisdictional state legislatures to explore the possibilities of regulating the regime.
The matter was being heard by a division bench of Hon’ble Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice Vishwajeet Shetty. Further, in relation to the petition, a notice was sent to the State Government.
