The Lok Sabha (lower house of the Parliament) passed the ‘Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025’ on Wednesday, which aims to promote and regulate esports, educational, and social games, while completely prohibiting the offering, operation, facilitation, advertisement, promotion, and participation in online money games.
The legislation is set to go to the Rajya Sabha for approval to become a law. The online game bill’s primary aim is to ban dealing in real money in online games, also put a blanket ban on gambling addiction, money laundering and financial frauds.
“The government believes that the harms of addiction, financial loss and even extreme consequences such as suicides associated with online money gaming can be prevented by prevention of such activities,” according to a media statement released by the government.
“Additionally, online money gaming platforms are often misused for financial fraud, money laundering, terror financing and messaging activity that compromise national security,” it added.
Under the bill, “e-sport” is defined as an online game played as part of multi-sport events, involving organised competitive competitions between individuals or teams. These events are conducted in multiplayer formats under pre-defined rules and recognised under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025. It clearly states that outcomes in esports are determined solely by players’ skills, including physical dexterity, mental agility, and strategic thinking.
The bill also states that the Central Government will take steps to promote esports, including setting guidelines for events, establishing training and research institutions, introducing incentive and awareness programs, coordinating with State Governments and sports federations, and implementing other measures to support the sector’s growth.
Esports is already entering the mainstream in India, marked by its debut in the Khelo India Youth Games 2025 earlier this year. States like Bihar, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Nagaland have also actively promoted grassroots esports through championships and structured programs, signalling growing recognition of competitive gaming as a legitimate sport.
