Crackdown on Illegal Online Gaming Intensifies Ahead of IPL

New Delhi, March 22: With the Indian Premier League (IPL) season approaching, authorities have ramped up action against illegal online gaming platforms. Officials have asked people to stay informed and use only regulated platforms for responsible gaming.

The Directorate General of Goods and Services Tax Intelligence (DGGI) said that they have has intensified its crackdown on offshore online gaming operators. Under India’s Goods and Services Tax (GST) law, online money gaming is classified as a supply of "goods" and is subject to a 28% tax. All gaming entities operating in India, including foreign platforms, must register under GST.

Around 700 offshore gaming platforms are under scanner and investigation for tax evasion, officials said. Many of these operators have been found avoiding GST by failing to register, hiding taxable transactions, and bypassing tax obligations. So far, 357 illegal or non-compliant gaming websites have been blocked by the DGGI with the support of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.

In recent enforcement actions, the DGGI has targeted bank accounts used to collect money from players. Nearly 2,000 accounts have been blocked, and ₹4 crore seized in coordination with the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). Additionally, 392 bank accounts linked to Unified Payments Interface (UPI) IDs on illegal gaming websites have been frozen, with a total of ₹122.05 crore provisionally attached.

The Ministry of Finance, in their press release, said another operation against a few Indian nationals who were running Online Money Gaming Platforms from outside India was conducted by DGGI. “It revealed that these individuals were facilitating online money gaming to Indian customers through various such online platforms, including Satguru Online Money Gaming Platform, Mahakaal Online Money Gaming Platform and Abhi247 Online Money Gaming Platform and are using mule bank accounts to collect money from Indian customers.”

DGGI has so far blocked 166 mule accounts linked with these platforms. Three such persons have been arrested till now and investigation against more such individuals is under progress.
Officals warn that non-compliance by foreign entities distorts fair competition, harms local businesses, and skews the market. These unscrupulous foreign entities circumvent restrictions by creating new web addresses. Investigations also revealed that these companies operated through ‘mule’ bank accounts to process transactions. Funds collected through mule accounts leave the potential to be funnelled into illicit activities, which may also be dangerous from the national security point of view.

Authorities have also observed that many Bollywood celebrities and cricketers along with YouTube, WhatsApp, and Instagram influencers, are found endorsing these platforms, and therefore the public is advised to remain cautious and not engage with offshore online money gaming platforms as it may jeopardise their personal finances and indirectly support activities that undermine financial integrity and national security.