Parliament Highlights: Online Gaming Bill passed in both Houses, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha adjourned sine die

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“The Monsoon Session of Parliament was extremely fruitful for the country and the government...But many new MPs were not allowed to speak in Parliament. The opposition itself is responsible for this, they disrupted the House a lot and did not participate in the scheduled time for discussion,” says Union Minister Kiren Rijiju.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla meets with PM Modi and other MPs and Union Ministers at the end of the Monsoon Session of Parliament in Delhi

The Monsoon Session, 2025 of Parliament which commenced on Monday, the 21st of July, 2025 has been adjourned sine die on Thursday, the 21st of August, 2025.During the Session, 14 Bills were introduced in Lok Sabha, says Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs. Twelve Bills were passed by Lok Sabha and 15 Bills were passed by Rajya Sabha and a total of 15 Bills were passed by both the Houses of Parliament

“It is unfortunate that the opposition is completely against democracy and has worked to strip this temple of democracy of its dignity. The people across the country are observing this kind of dirty politics—how Congress, TMC, and the entire opposition have attacked the core of democracy—and we will communicate these issues to the common people. These people aim to halt India's progress,” says BJP MP Deepak Prakash.

“From 21st July to 21st August, it was a waste of people's money. Every day, the House was called and then adjourned. It was a preplanned program of the BJP government. They did not allow any discussion to take place... This is the beginning of the dictatorial rule in our country,” says Congress MP Mallu Ravi.

Union Minister Vaishnaw also hit out at the opposition for creating ruckus in the House while the Minister was moving the bill for passing.

He said, "From time to time many irregularities arise in the society, at such times it is the responsibility of the Government and the Parliament to take action against the irregularities and bring solutions which can stop these irregularities in the society. We all know that earlier many families were getting destroyed due to chit funds, Modi government dealt with the problem by bringing a law on it. Whenever the interest of middle class and youth is discussed, PM Modi ji has always talked about the interest of middle class and youth by keeping revenue and economy on one side and rising it above that. The same subject is before the Parliament today. If Opposition works on this subject today, we also understand that they also talk about the interests of the middle class and the youth, but they are not concerned about this at all, they work only and only for their political objectives."

Ashwini Vaishnaw stated the third segment - 'Online Money Game' as has become "Public Health Risk."

He further said, "2/3rd segment of the entire world of online gaming is being promoted, but there is one such segment, 3rd - online money games, due to which a big problem has arisen in the society, especially in the middle class youth. It gets addicted and the family's savings are spent. It is estimated that 45 crore people are affected by it and more than ₹20,000 crore has been destroyed in it. WHO has declared it a gaming disorder. Online money gaming has become a public health risk. Problems like psychological disorder, compulsive behaviour, violent behaviour are arising from it. Many families have been destroyed due to it. This has become a huge problem. Its major aspect is money laundering and its effect have also been seen in terror activities. There were efforts to stop this problem but this problem kept on increasing."

Speaking in the Rajya Sabha, Ashwini Vaishnaw said, "Online gaming is an important subject which has emerged as an important sector in the digital world. It has 3 segments - the first segment is e-sports, in which people form a team and play, learn coordination, have strategic thinking. Our players have also won many medals. In this bill, e-sports will be promoted, an authority will be created for it and it will get legal recognition. The second is Online Social Games which includes solitaire, chess, soduku, etc. In this bill, online social games will be promoted, encouraged and an authority will be created."

The Rajya Sabha on Thursday agreed to send the Constitution (One Hundred & Thirtieth Amendment) Bill, 2025, Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill, 2025, and The Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2025 to a Joint Committee, consisting of 21 Lok Sabha members and 10 Rajya Sabha members to be nominated by the Speaker and Deputy Chairman respectively.

Rajya Sabha has been adjourned sine die, Monsoon Session of Parliament concludes.

Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025 passed by the Rajya Sabha.

As Lok Sabha session concludes, Speaker Om Birla attributed the House's limited productivity of 37 hours to "planned disruptions and ruckus," which fell short of the targeted 120 hours of discussion.

In his valedictory speech, the Speaker said, "This session commenced on July 21, 2025. In this session, 12 legislations were passed. On July 28 and 29, there was a special discussion on Operation Sindoor, which was concluded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's answers. On August 18, a special discussion was initiated on India's achievements in space programs. In this session, 419 types of questions were included, but due to planned disruptions, only 55 questions could be answered."

“In the start of the session, we all had planned that there would be 120-hour discussion. A consensus was formed for this in the Business Advisory Committee (BAC), but due to ruckus and planned disruptions, our productivity was only 37 hours. People choose us as their representative to work on their problems, but from few days, I have been observing that discussions in the House are not in accordance with the decorum and traditions.”

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Wednesday articulated the purpose behind the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, highlighting a multi-year engagement process with the gaming industry.

Speaking to ANI about the bill, Vaishnaw emphasised the government's efforts over the past three years, where they were "deeply engaged" with the gaming industry.

He said, "Our purpose of this bill and this exercise has been ongoing for almost three plus years, where we have deeply engaged with industry to see how the harmful impact can be prevented, contained and reduced

Shares of Nazara Tech slumped over 21% in two sessions and were headed for their steepest two-day fall on Thursday, after India’s lower house of parliament passed a bill banning online games involving monetary stakes, which analysts warned could make the sector "infeasible".

The gaming platform operator's stock fell 9.5% on the day, extending losses after a 13% slide on Wednesday, and hitting a 15-week low of 1,125.1 rupees.

The bill, which now awaits review in parliament's upper house, says that no person "shall offer, aid, abet, induce or otherwise indulge or engage in" offering online money games and related services.

Speaking on online gaming bill, BJP MP Dinesh Sharma said it is a mystery why the opposition is agitated about it

"Online gaming used to bring in a lot of donations to people. If someone's betting, someone's gambling stops, they will be agitated. It is a mystery why the Opposition is agitated, if CMs, Ministers and the PM come within the purview of law if they indulge in corruption then 80% of the governments are that of the BJP. It is they who should have been upset..."

The Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die on Thursday with Speaker Om Birla lamenting the conduct of Opposition members during the Monsoon Session.

After an earlier adjournment at 11 am, the House met again at 12 noon, in which Birla lamented that in the entire session, efforts were made to disrupt the proceedings repeatedly. He said it was time for introspection for all as not much discussion could take place during the month-long session.

The session commenced on July 21, in which the entire Opposition disrupted proceedings daily, seeking a discussion on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar. After his valedictory address, Birla adjourned the House sine die (for an indefinite period).

Rajya Sabha to meet at 2 p.m.

The Indian market for such gaming is set to be worth $3.6 billion by 2029, according venture capital firm Lumikai. And several apps are likely to be impacted if the bill gets passed.  Check the full list here

Dream11

My11Circle

Howzat

SG11 Fantasy

WinZO

Games24x7 (parent of My11Circle and RummyCircle)

Junglee Games (covers Rummy & Poker)

PokerBaazi

GamesKraft (also known as RummyCulture)

Nazara Technologies (investor in PokerBaazi, though its direct RMG revenue is minimal)

A day after the Lok Sabha passed the Online Gaming Bill, the Esports Players Welfare Association (EPWA) has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking reconsideration of the Bill, which aims to promote online social games while prohibiting money-based gaming services.

In its letter, EPWA expressed gratitude to the government for recognizing the importance of regulation in a growing industry but flagged concerns over the "blanket ban" on Money Games proposed under the bill.

The association, which represents a wide community of professional gamers, esports athletes, chess players, streamers, developers, and tournament organizers, argued that the current form of the bill does not distinguish between games of skill and games of chance.

Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned till the post-lunch session within minutes of assembly on Thursday, as Opposition parties protested rejection of their adjournment notices.

Soon after the listed papers and reports were tabled in the House, Deputy Chairman Harivansh said he has received 18 notices on four different subjects under Rule 267, which allows suspension of listed business to discuss matters being raised in them.

"Since none of the notices received today are in adherence with the requirements of the rules, I am not admitting any of the notices," he said.

This led to protests with several Opposition members up on their feet protesting the decision.

The Chair adjourned the proceedings till 2 pm.

Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned till 12 noon on Thursday following Opposition protests over revision of electoral rolls in Bihar.

As soon as the House met, members from the Opposition parties sought to raise the issue of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.

Speaker Om Birla mentioned that today is the last day of the session and that the Opposition members do not want to allow the Question Hour before adjourning the proceedings till 12 noon.

Question Hour has been virtually washed out in the Lower House during this session.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is scheduled to move a motion in the Rajya Sabha today, seeking the House's concurrence to set up a Joint Committee of the Houses on three key bills. The bills are amendments to the Constitution of India, the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963, the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 and Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bil

The bills passed or returned by the Rajya Sabha are The Bills of Lading Bill, 2025, The Carriage of Goods by Sea Bill, 2025, The Coastal Shipping Bill, 2025, The Manipur Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2025, The Manipur Appropriation (No.2) Bill, 2025, The Merchant Shipping Bill, 2025 and The Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa Bill, 2025

Other bills passed by the Rajya Sabha are The National Sports Governance Bill, 2025, The National Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill, 2025, The Income-tax Bill, 2025, The Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025, The Indian Ports Bill, 2025, The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2025 and The Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill, 2025

The bills passed by the Lok Sabha are The Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa Bill, 2025, The Merchant Shipping Bill, 2025, The Manipur Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2025, The Manipur Appropriation (No.2) Bill, 2025, The National Sports Governance Bill, 2025, and The National Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill, 2025.

Other bills passed by the Lok Sabha are The Income-tax Bill, 2025, The Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025, The Indian Ports Bill, 2025, The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2025, The Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill, 2025 and The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025.

Twelve bills were passed by the Lok Sabha and 14 by the Rajya Sabha during the month-long Monsoon session of Parliament, which has witnessed repeated disruptions, adjournments and walkouts.

Barring discussions on Operation Sindoor in both House, the session has seen little business ever since it began on July 21 due to repeated disruptions and adjournments initially due to opposition demand for discussion on Operation Sindoor and then over demands for a discussion on the Special Intensive Revision exercise in Bihar.

The Monsoon session is scheduled to end on Thursday.

A bill to regulate online gaming, which was passed by Lok Sabha on Wednesday with voice vote amid din, was welcomed by many MPs who highlighted the "serious problem" of money games harming society, even as Congress MP Shashi Tharoor cautioned that the ban on these games that use money will only push such activities "underground".

Tharoor said that such online games can serve as a useful source of revenue for the government if legalised, regulated and taxed.

The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, bans the operating, facilitating and advertising of online money games, as the government looks to check rising instances of addiction, money laundering and financial fraud through such applications.