The Union government has told the Supreme Court that unregulated online money gaming has evolved into a “clear and present threat” to India’s financial system, public health and national security.
In a detailed affidavit responding to challenges filed by major gaming companies, the Centre said real-money gaming platforms have fuelled addiction, triggered scores of suicides, enabled large-scale money laundering and even served as channels for terror financing. The government estimates that Indians collectively lose around Rs 20,000 crore every year on such platforms, with nearly 45 crore users affected.
The submission comes as the court examines a constitutional challenge to the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, led by Head Digital Works Pvt Ltd, which has questioned Parliament’s power to impose a complete ban on real-money online games.
According to the affidavit, the ecosystem surrounding unregulated money-based gaming has been used to channel funds connected to drug trafficking, human trafficking, fraud and weapons smuggling. The government said it could submit classified intelligence in a sealed cover if the Court required, noting that several ministries and enforcement agencies had contributed to the findings.
Flagging a dramatic rise in questionable financial flows, the Centre stated that suspicious gaming-linked transactions had increased “exponentially” in four years. Suspicious Transaction Reports rose from a single query in 2019–20 to more than 200 in 2023–24. Around 7,000 bank accounts were involved, with a near twentyfold jump in inbound and outbound transfers. The government also cited outward remittances worth over Rs 5,700 crore in FY24 routed through real-money gaming platforms, many of them directed to jurisdictions with weak regulatory oversight.
Public health impacts form a core part of the government’s case. Citing state submissions, the affidavit noted 32 suicides in Karnataka between January 2023 and July 2025, 20 in Telangana last year and more than 30 in Tamil Nadu in recent years. The Centre argued that the scale of financial loss and addiction justified strong intervention.
Investigations revealed widespread use of mule accounts operated by students, homemakers and retired persons to obscure the identity of actual operators. Many of these accounts were tied to crypto-based transfers, hawala networks and offshore shell companies, creating a high-risk channel for laundering illicit funds.