Centre blocks 300 websites as crackdown on illegal gambling and betting continue

New Delhi: The Centre has blocked 300 websites and apps as part of crackdown on illegal gambling and betting websites.

These websites and apps are into online sports betting platforms; online casinos offering slots, roulette, live dealer tables; betting exchanges functioning like Peer to Peer betting marketplaces, sources said here on Friday.

Action has also been taken on satta/matka gambling networks, and real-money card and casino game apps, sources said.

With this crackdown, sources in the government said that the number of websites or apps blocked for illegal activities so far have risen to 8,400 after the passage of the Online Gaming Act.

The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, was passed by the Parliament on August 21, 2025.

The Gaming Act comprehensively prohibits all forms of online money games, be it games of chance, games of skill, or any combination. It also prohibits the advertising, promotion, and facilitation of such games, as well as the processing of related financial transactions through banks or payment systems.

The Act further empowers authorities to block access to unlawful platforms under the provisions of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The Gaming Act prescribes stringent penalties for violations.

Under this, offering online money games or facilitating financial transactions for such online money games may attract imprisonment of up to three years or a fine up to Rs 1 crore, or both.

Moreover, a second or subsequent conviction for offering or facilitating online money games attracts a minimum of three years of imprisonment (may extend up to 5 years), and a fine of minimum Rs 1 crore (may extend up to Rs 2 crore).