Online gaming platform A23 has moved the Karnataka High Court challenging the central government’s newly enacted law banning real-money online games, marking the first legal battle against the sweeping legislation that has upended India’s multi-billion-dollar gaming industry.
The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, passed by Parliament earlier this month and signed by President Droupadi Murmu, bans all forms of online money-based gaming while promoting e-sports and free-to-play social games. The Act, introduced to address concerns over addiction, money laundering, and financial fraud, has forced popular platforms like Dream11, My11Circle, WinZO, Zupee, PokerBaazi, and RummyCulture to suspend their money-gaming contests.
In its plea before the Karnataka High Court, A23, which operates online rummy and poker, argued that the law “criminalises the legitimate business of playing online games of skill”, warning that it could wipe out several gaming companies overnight.
The company said the legislation reflected “state paternalism” and urged the court to declare it unconstitutional when applied to games of skill such as rummy and poker, which have long enjoyed judicial recognition as being distinct from games of chance.
A23.com claims to have more than 70 million registered players across India.
While A23 has chosen to contest the ban, other leading firms have decided against litigation. Gameskraft, which runs rummy app RummyCulture, said it fully respected the legislative process and had “no intention of pursuing any legal challenge”. The company has already paused its ‘Add Cash’ feature and gameplay services since the law came into effect on August 22.
“Guided by our core values and compliance with the new bill, Gameskraft remains committed to constructive dialogue with policymakers and stakeholders, responsible innovation, and player protection,” a company spokesperson said.
Dream11 parent Dream Sports also confirmed it would not challenge the law. Co-founder Harsh Jain admitted the ban had erased “95 per cent of revenues and 100 per cent of profits overnight”, but stressed that the company would not resort to layoffs. “We want to focus on the future and not fight with the government on something they don’t want,” Jain told Moneycontrol.
The Act represents the government’s most stringent intervention yet in India’s booming online gaming sector, where skill-based money games had grown exponentially over the last decade. The industry’s future now hinges on the outcome of A23’s constitutional challenge in the Karnataka High Court — a case that could set a precedent for whether games like rummy and poker are treated differently under the law.
