What are the various options available with the Central government to regulate the rapidly growing online gaming sector? Discuss (200 Words)
Refer - Business Line
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IAS Parliament 3 years
KEY POINTS
· The formal announcement of an AVGC (Animation, Visual, Gaming and Comics) Task Force, highlights the Centre’s commitment towards these sunrise sectors.
· The question of gaming regulation becomes critical, all three recent High Court judgments (Madras, Kerala, and Karnataka) was that State governments cannot categorise Games of Skill under Entry 34 of List II (State list) of Schedule 7 of the Constitution.
· One option could be Entry 33 in List II which, amongst other things, lists sports, entertainments, and amusements.
· The nature of the industry, where transactions are overwhelmingly inter-State, opens a possibility for the Centre to regulate under Entry 42 (inter-State trade and commerce) of the Union List.
· Another option is Entry 31 of the Union List that empowers the Centre to legislate on matters pertaining to posts, telegraphs, telephones, wireless, broadcast.
· The Centre could also use residuary powers (Article 248 and Entry 97 of the Union List, in the Constitution) that empower it to legislate on any matter not enumerated in List II or List III (Concurrent).
· The other pragmatic route for the Union to legislate is through Article 252 of the Constitution, wherein legislatures of two or more States abdicate their power on an entry in the State List.
