The Hindu : Kerala News : `Ban on online lotteries not illegal'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, May 31, 2005

Kerala

Kerala

`Ban on online lotteries not illegal'

Staff Reporter

KOCHI: The Kerala High Court was informed by the State Government that the action of the Government in banning online lotteries and lifting the ban on paper lotteries were in conformity with the laws.

The submission was made in an affidavit filed in response to a writ petition filed by the State of Sikkim and the other online lottery agents challenging the Government action.

The affidavit said that online lotteries could not be considered as lotteries in the strict sense of the term. The Government had detected flagrant violation of the laws. The affidavit said online lotteries were just a gamble played out with the aid of computers. The Government said that it had not prohibited the sale of paper lotteries. Besides, the State did not conduct online lotteries. The State Government was of the view that online lotteries did not have the characteristic features of a lottery as defined by the Lotteries (Regulation) Act. The online lottery operators were really cheating the public in a big way in the absence of a proper regulatory system for the same. The affidavit said that the States, which were organising online lotteries, had no control over the conduct of lotteries.

The affidavit further said that the conduct of online lotteries had been included in the Kerala Gambling Act by an amendment. The operation of online lotteries was an offence under the Act. Justice K. Balakrishan Nair adjourned the hearing on the petition to June 4.

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