partial relief it had granted to Harsh Jain and Bhavit Sheth, the cofounders of Mumbai-based fantasy gaming platform Dream11, last month. The extension of relief means the Bengaluru Police will not take any coercive action against them until further orders from the court.
The Annapoorneshwari Nagar Police in Bengaluru, had last month, registered an FIR against the fantasy gaming platform on a complaint from a city resident that the game operator was violating the new state law banning wagering and betting in online games.
Justice Sreenivas Harish Kumar, before whom the case came up for hearing on Tuesday, adjourned the case after a brief hearing as the government sought time to file objections in the case. On October 28, when the case came up for hearing, the Judge had directed the Bengaluru Police not to take coercive steps based on the FIR, after the petitioners sought urgent relief with the plea that they fear police could arrest them any time.
The court, however, has not imposed any curbs on investigations by the city police on the alleged violation of law by the gaming company.
Dream11 suspended operations in Karnataka on October 10, days after the city police registered an FIR against the company’s founders following a complaint that the Mumbai-based firm had continued to offer gaming services on its platform a week after the state government notified the new rules disallowing what it termed as “games of chance.”
The Karnataka government, on October 5, notified the law banning betting and wagering in online games after Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot gave his assent. The Karnataka Legislature had passed amendments to Karnataka Police Act, 1963 during its recent sitting.
Karnataka’s amended Police Act bans online games that are “games of chance” in nature. The law reads: “gaming means and includes online games, involving all forms of wagering or betting, including in the form of tokens valued in terms of money paid before or after issue of it, or electronic means and virtual currency, electronic transfer of funds in connection with any game of chance.” The law, however, excludes lottery or wagering or betting on horse-race.
Instruments of gaming, the law says, included any article used or intended to be used as a subject or means of gaming, including computers, computer system, mobile app or internet or cyberspace, virtual platform, computer network, computer resource, any communication device, electronic applications, software.
