All India Gaming Federation (AIGF), the apex self-regulatory body for skill gaming in India has been consistently raising the issue of offshore betting websites advertising aggressively in violation of laws in India. Indian laws prohibit games of chance from being offered or played. Only Goa, Sikkim, and Meghalaya permit games of chance which requires a prior license. The Public Gambling Act of 1867 or similar laws operational in the states prohibits all games of chance that illegal online casinos offer.

The not-for-profit body has recently written to Prime Minister Modi raising the issue of several illegal online gambling/betting/trading websites operating in India through entities incorporated outside India.  In the letter, AIGF alleged that these websites are luring customers from India and claiming to be legally offering their services to residents of India. AIGF counts casino gaming giant Delta, multi-gaming platform Gameskraft, Pokerstars, Zuppee, and Adda52 among the members. AIGF CEO Roland Landers has been consistently tweeting on the issue.

Also read: The legality of Dafabet, Bet365 in India

The companies offering illegal betting services are incorporated outside India. AIGF has earlier requested the authorities to raise the issue at diplomatic levels to bring the culprit companies, their promoters and directors to Indian legal clutches.

Most of these companies are incorporated and located in foreign countries such as the United Kingdom, Malta, Curacao (Netherlands), UAE, South Africa, Costa Rica etc.  Among the cricketers, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, DJ Bravo, Kevin Petersen, and Dale Steyn act as brand ambassadors to various offshore betting platforms. Recently, in a similar case, the Nepal Telecom Authority had shut down several offshore betting and casino websites in the Himalayan country.