“We are treading cautiously when it comes to [online] gaming," Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary Industries & Commerce (I&C) Department & Information Technology, Electronics and Communications (ITE&C), Government of Telangana, said, referring to online betting and wagering platforms. "Blanket banning is not a solution, one needs to have a distinction between games of skill and games of chance. The pushbacks from law enforcement and other agencies are largely driven by games of chance. We cannot rule out that certain things can’t be manipulated, the need is to understand how we navigate the regulatory framework, we also need to dive deeper and find a middle path… We are taking certain steps in Telangana, but want to ensure that these are not challenged by courts or lead to public outcry,” he added. Ranjan was speaking at GATO’21, an event organised by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI). His remarks come even as Andhra Pradesh, Telangana's neighbouring state, banned all forms of betting and wagering in the state. Telangana appears, from Ranjan's remarks, to prefer that games of skill continue to operate under restrictions and regulations that won't be struck down by the courts, like what happened with Tamil Nadu's law. But there is some movement in the state government — Ranjan said in a different event on August 25 that the Telangana government is working on a self-regulation framework for online real money gaming platforms. Central law coming? “Centrally, it would help if the Central Government recognises certain games of skill and…
