Overview
- A bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and K.V. Viswanathan issued notice to the Union on a PIL by CASC and Shourya Tiwari alleging roughly 2,000 betting and gambling apps are operating as social or e‑sports games.
- The Court tagged the PIL with cases challenging the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, and asked the government to file a comprehensive response.
- Government counsel said the reliefs sought are addressed by PROGA, which has been enacted but is not yet in force.
- The petition seeks blocking orders under IT Act Section 69A, restrictions on UPI and other payments to unregistered gaming platforms, stricter app‑store controls, recovery of taxes from offshore operators, and protections for children’s data.
- During hearings, the bench orally indicated regular competitions and tournaments may fall outside the law’s scope, as platforms argued the statute has shut skill‑based operations and affected livelihoods.