Petition to see poker as a game of skill in India withdrawn

Last year, Indian poker player Karan Mutha had filed a petition with the Delhi High Court to try and convince the court to recognize poker as a game of skill and not a game of chance. According to an exclusive report by GLaws, the player has now withdrawn the petition.

In the petition, Mutha argued that police didn’t specify the game being played when they raided a card game in 2016 in Greater Kailash, Delhi. He also asserted that, since poker is a game of skill, it is exempt from being covered by the Delhi Public Gambling Act of 1955. Mutha also pointed out that statutory provisions entered by the Karnataka High Court into the West Bengal Gambling and Prize Competitions Act of 1957, in conjunction with skill games laws in Nagaland, have shown that poker is a game of skill, not chance.

Mutha also had presented additional compelling evidence to support his claim. He pointed out that the country is now permitting various poker leagues and poker tournaments and argued that the fact that poker has become so prevalent worldwide should be an indication that it is not simply a game of chance.

The petition was finally heard by Justice Mukta Gupta yesterday. When it came time for Mutha to present his case, his attorney requested that the petition be withdrawn. It will now move to a trial court, which is said to have already prepared charges against Mutha.