Sanika Deshpande –
Published On: October 29, 2021 at 15:29 IST
The High Court of Karnataka on October 28th directed the State Government to not take any coercive action against the founders of the Dream 11 gaming app, Bhavit Sheth and Harish Jain.
The duo had approached the Court seeking to quash the FIR registered against them by Police under the Karnataka Police (Amendment) Act. The Act bans online gaming and gambling in the State of Karnataka.
Justice Sreenivas Harish Kumar in his order said, “Counsel for the Petitioner is present, AGA seeks time for taking instruction on the Petition. Petitioner’s counsel submits he is likely to be arrested. The Respondent State is hereby directed not to take coercive steps till the next date of hearing. List the matter on November 9. ”
Earlier, the Annapoorneshwari Nagar Police Station registered an FIR under Sections 79 and 80 of the Amendment Act.
The Petition stated that the case which was registered by Respondent Police suffers from want of sanction of law.
Senior Advocate C V Nagesh, who appeared for the Petitioners, argued that “The complaint makes out no offence against the accused. Rather, the complainant has chosen to make mere bald, omnibus, and vague allegations to the effect that the petitioners are founders and directors of the company which has developed the Dream 11 platform. “
As Karnataka is known for its progress in technology, the estimates indicate that the State accounts for around 15% of the country’s market. There are around 92 gaming companies registered in Bengaluru.