The starting point: the 1867 Act
The Public Gambling Act, 1867 is the central law on public gaming houses, and several states adopted it rather than write their own. Others passed their own gambling acts, and a few used that freedom to allow casinos or licensed gaming within their borders.
Gambling laws state by state
| State | What the law allows or bans | Law |
|---|---|---|
| Goa | Slot machines and electronic games in five-star hotels; table games on vessels offshore, where the government authorises them | Goa Public Gambling Act, 1976, section 13A |
| Sikkim | Two casino licences for five-star hotels; two licences for online games and sports gaming on terminals inside the state; residents barred from the casinos since July 2016 | Sikkim Casino Games (Control and Tax) Act, 2002; Sikkim Online Gaming (Regulation) Act, 2008 |
| Nagaland | Staking money on listed games of skill is not gambling; online skill games need a licence | Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling and Promotion and Regulation of Online Games of Skill Act |
| Tamil Nadu | Online gambling banned and online gaming regulated by state law, upheld by the Supreme Court on 27 May 2026 | Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Gaming Act |
| Karnataka | Amendments on betting and gaming, online play included, upheld by the Supreme Court on the same day | Karnataka Police (Amendment) Act, 2021 |
Sikkim's online gaming law
Sikkim passed its Online Gaming (Regulation) Act in 2008, covering games of chance or of skill and chance such as poker, roulette and blackjack. The gaming server has to be in the state. The Directorate of State Lotteries, which runs the state's casino and online licences, says the online games are played on intranet terminals that cannot be reached from outside Sikkim.
What the Supreme Court decided in May 2026
In State of Tamil Nadu v Junglee Games India, decided on 27 May 2026, the Supreme Court allowed the appeals of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka and restored the laws that High Courts had struck down. A state's power over betting and gambling, it held, reaches betting on online games, and once betting enters a game, the mix of skill and chance in the game itself carries little weight.
How the states and the 2025 Act fit together
The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 is a central law that bans online money games everywhere in India from May 2026. Section 18 says it adds to other laws and, where they conflict, overrides them. A state law can therefore ban more, but a state cannot license an online money game that the central Act bans.
Questions
Which states allow casinos in India?
Goa permits gaming in five-star hotels and on offshore vessels under section 13A of its gambling law, and Sikkim has licensed casinos in two five-star hotels.
Can a state allow online casinos?
No. Since 1 May 2026 the central ban on online money games applies in every state, and state licences reach only their own territory.
Sources
- Constitution of India, Seventh Schedule, List II, entry 34
- Supreme Court, State of Tamil Nadu v Junglee Games India, 27 May 2026, including its account of the 1867 Act and the Nagaland Act
- Sikkim Online Gaming (Regulation) Act, 2008 and the Directorate of State Lotteries
- Goa Public Gambling (Amendment) Bill, 2008, annexure with section 13A
- Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, section 18