Who is impacted?

This issue impacts every Indian national, who is not a resident of the following states: Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Odisha, Nagaland, and Telangana. Currently, residents of these states are not permitted to play on betting apps and websites using real money.

That is because states are permitted by the Indian Constitution to enact laws regulating betting and gambling in their respective jurisdictions. In furtherance of these powers, the above states have enacted anti-gambling legislations that are largely in concert with the Public Gambling Act of 1867, and include the exception of “games of skill”.

Where a state legislation on gambling exists, it prevails over the Public Gambling Act of 1867. 

What is at stake?

Simply put, the personal savings and precious lives of fellow Indians are at stake.

Online gambling refers to any kind of betting conducted on the Internet including virtual poker, virtual casinos, sports betting, and fantasy sports betting. You can click here for more information on online gambling.

Refer to this discussion forum to understand the impact that online gambling has had on the lives of those who have been lured by these scams and in worst-case scenarios found themselves trapped in them.

The common reasoning used in most cases, especially online poker, is that the game is skill-based. Unfortunately, there is no way to ascertain that, at least when you are playing these games virtually.

The other “logic” to receive substantial flak in this regard is the RNG certification that these apps and websites claim to have. I will explore this aspect towards the end of the petition. But before I get to that, you can read this blog to recognize the significance of RNG certifications and also skim through this article for a better understanding of fair play. 

One Twitter user went out of his way to explain the issue with PokerBaazi in particular. You can go through his thread on X for some significant insights. 

Why is now the time to act?

Dream11 to PokerBaazi - Indians seem to have a new online gaming addiction. And they are losing big!

To understand how these platforms target their audience and reap from the inherent weakness of their users, you can refer to this article here.

• Sudden Spike in Suicides

Over the past 3 years, at least 40 cases of online gambling-related deaths have been reported in Tamil Nadu. Despite the beeline of suicides, measures to stop online gambling in the state are stuck in legislative red tape, with Governor R.N. Ravi refusing to give his nod to a proposed bill banning online gambling.

• Celebrity Endorsements

Last year, PokerBaazi signed actor Shahid Kapoor as its brand ambassador. Their campaign titled #youholdthecards "aims to get rid of the ‘luck factor’ associated with poker". Ironically, the actor, who was last seen in Farzi - a black comedy crime thriller, charges anything between 1 crore and 5 crores for a single photo shoot according to celebrity management firm Sky Events.

So one can only imagine the kind of money he was paid for endorsing PokerBaazi as India's biggest free online poker platform that describes the game as "a skill-based sport where you play for gold, glory, and everything in between".

• Violation of ASCI Prerequisites

After the campaign went live on YouTube, the Advertising Standards Council Of India concluded that the advertisement was promoting unsafe/dangerous activities and encouraging negligence. Following ASCI’s direction, YouTube was forced to take down the ad, which reportedly cost its makers 35 crores.

• Negative User Feedback

Now, take a look at PokerBaazi’s user feedback on a reputed consumer review and rating platform, where the app has a 1.7-star rating based on 900+ reviews. Below are a few other resources that you can check out for feedback from more users:

Is PokerBaazi legit?​

User reviews of PokerBaazi: Don’t play this game; you’ll never win​

PokerBaazi Reviews

During my deep-dive, I found several complaints against PokerBaazi at the Consumer Court as well. Those who are interested will find two of them below:

Fraud in PokerBaazi​

Fraudulent practices in the name of fair gameplay in poker

• My Personal Tragedy

With all this context, let me now share the story of my suffering, where I lost more than 5 lakhs in less than 5 days on PokerBaazi.

I downloaded the PokerBaazi app on 9th July after being shown the above-mentioned ad while surfing my YouTube, which I wasn’t subscribed to at the time but happened to use regularly anyway. I was previously a user of Zynga Poker, which is mostly free to play. I reckon that is where my data was acquired from.

For those who don’t know, free users of YouTube are subject to targeted ads, kind of like traditional television but in effect more dangerous. Unfortunately, in the world we inhabit today, nothing comes for free, and you shouldn’t live in the illusion that something does or might.

Either you pay for the products you use or you become the product yourself. I guess that’s just how capitalism works, especially when your data is no longer private; I learned this the hard way. Besides, everything seems fair in war and business these days. 

So anyway, after playing relentlessly on PokerBaazi for less than 5 days, I found myself broke, devastated, and literally contemplating death on 16th July and for several days after. To share the exact figures, I deposited 5.17 lakhs in total and withdrew only 60 thousand during this period, therefore incurring a loss of 4.57 lakhs by the end of it.

Not to mention, a severe lack of sleep and rest caused me a lot of anxiety and stress, leading to the deterioration of my mental health and overall well-being. I was in utter shock and complete disbelief initially - everything happened so quickly and I was solely responsible. I couldn’t help but question my own worth and abilities.

Two months later, I was contacted by a “personal assistant” from PokerBaazi, who was curious to know why I hadn’t been playing. After sharing my horrifying story and explaining how I had ruined my finances, I was gaslighted into reunderstanding all of it was my fault or at the least my own doing.

Embarrassingly enough, I enquired if there was a way I could get back my cash or even part of it. In all fairness, he did show me a glimmer of hope before quickly retracting what he suggested and clarifying that wouldn’t be possible.

A few days later, the same guy attempted to rope me into PokerBaazi’s annual GOAT tournament by offering two free tickets for the qualifiers (priced at 5.5 thousand each) and dangling before me the final prize pool of 10 crores. He lured me by saying I may be able to use the free tickets to recover part of my money if I managed to qualify for the finals. I accepted the offer only to unravel more manipulations on PokerBaazi.

When I tried to address these concerns, thanks to my working knowledge of blockers in poker, he gaslighted me once again by suggesting poker is a game of “probabilities and uncertainties” and that I might "not understand it too well". I couldn’t resist the urge to correct him at this point because I realized not only had I poorly invested my hard-earned money so far but also my time, which I happen to value equally.

The silver lining to this gloomy life event of mine is the fact that I managed to fearfully stay out of debt and not borrow money from anyone. In a way, I feel that is what makes it slightly easier for me to hold myself accountable for my impulsive decisions and following actions. I reckon others continue to falter even after enduring all of this because they just don’t know better or fail to ever find out.

The trauma of this financial loss continued to haunt me for many months and I have gained the courage to share my ordeal only recently. Those who have found themselves in similar situations may be able to empathise because they might understand how the aftermath of such experiences leads to the massive feeling of guilt (that we tend to inflict upon ourselves) and shame (that others tend to inflict on us).

Before I proceed with further revelations, take a moment to consider the sheer number of people who are at the risk of being taken advantage of or preyed on by these supposed businesses in India. I wish I was the only one bearing the brunt of an addictive personality, but I'm not. And strangely, it comforts me to know that this petition I am writing might actually help many others. 

• No RNG Certification

PokerBaazi in particular has two RNG certifications listed on its website - the first was issued in June 2018 and the second in August 2023. Tragically for me, the platform wasn't even certified when I lost all my savings but I hadn't verified that at the time. They got the second certification a month later.

Now I’m not so sure how they were operating from the expiration of their first RNG certificate to the clearance of the second one. Please note that both certificates were issued by different bodies five years apart. While iTech Labs is headquartered in Australia and GLI in the US, PokerBaazi continues its operations exclusively in India as it always has.

• The Man of the Hour

Now, let me quickly fill you in on the man of the hour - Navkiran Singh, who identifies as the Founder and CEO of Baazi Games. PokerBaazi was the company's first flagship product but Navkiran quickly diversified his portfolio with SportsBaazi, CardBaazi, BalleBaazi, and RummyBaazi, which are now all part of the same franchise. He even featured on Fortune 40 Under 40 in 2022 as one of India's best entrepreneurs.

While little to no information is available about Navkiran’s net worth, his company saw a 64% jump in revenue in FY22 with Rs 249 crores from Rs 152 crores in FY21. Baazi Games promotes itself as the Indian developer of world-class gaming products for the biggest brands in online sports and the real-money gaming industry. 

Kudos to Navkiran for all he has achieved; my issue with him is two-pronged:

A. His unnatural obsession with poker being entirely skill-based, whether played online or in-person.

B. His claim to be doing the same thing as the coveted WSOP tournament that's held annually in Las Vegas. 

Staying true to PokerBaazi’s false advertising, these claims are not only misleading but almost entirely untrue. Poker is not a game of only skill; it is a game of probability, where some chance and a few skills surely add up over time. I don't know what Navkiran considers as "skill" and I wouldn't mind a clarification, to be honest. But, it’s quite appalling that he compares his gimmicks with WSOP, considering the ugly reputation even that glorious brand has acquired for its virtual undertakings. 

I am still unsure how Navkiran has managed to escape all scrutiny and protect himself from any criticism. However, one thing is abundantly clear: he is no pioneer in any business. At best, he is yet another wannabe entrepreneur spinning half-baked truths to milk his ignorant consumers and exploit an untapped market. Sadly for all poker enthusiasts in India, Navkiran is using their sport as his bait.

• Growing Frauds in India

This shouldn’t surprise any of us, especially after the Mahadev Gaming app came under the scanner earlier this year for raking in 200 crores daily, amassing 5,000 crores over five years, and allegedly being involved in money laundering. You can read more about that scam here. 

• The Government's Involvement

In the absence of any clear centralised legislation, Indian citizens have always wondered where their government stands on such matters. Recently, the administration proposed to levy a 28% tax on player deposits in the real-money gaming sector. To me, this seems like a double-edged sword.

Those in power are trying to peddle the idea that this move is in the best interest of commoners - to protect them from financial bankruptcy and discourage habitual gamblers from betting, online or otherwise. But truth be told: once passed, this piece of legislation will become a huge source of revenue for the who’s who of the country. After all, who can stop the morally bankrupt from having a piece of the pie that’s already baking!

Call to Action

A poker pandemic is on the rise in India, and it needs to be curtailed! When played online or clubbed with mindless betting, it gives the game a bad name and is nothing short of gambling.

Sign my petition now to boycott PokerBaazi and other online betting platforms that use real money!