Betting and gambling is illegal in India. Anyone who is involved in betting or organizing and facilitating betting platforms is punishable with even imprisonment. However, the development in technology and the coming of the digital economy has helped scamsters run illegal betting businesses completely online. Online gambling and betting apps have gained huge popularity in India over the last few years. In a recent action against such betting apps, the government of India has banned 21 such apps and asked for them to be blocked on the internet.
This action came after an investigation by the Enforcement Directorate which also did many raids at several locations associated with the betting platforms. The most popular of these apps is the Mahadev Book Online that has been under the scanner for some time now. The celebrities associated with promoting this app were also served notice earlier. The government has put a complete ban on the platform.
ED seized assets worth ₹417 crore in connection with the Mahadev Online Betting app and it is believed that the company made more than ₹450 crore each month. The ED said that the operations were run from Dubai through a cache of online applications.
This ban also comes as an aftermath of increased number of cyberattack on Indian government platforms in recent times. There has been a 460% increase in these attacks lately.
