Government Orders Shutdown of Online Betting Sites, Monitoring Begins in Nepal

 

Kathmandu. The government has started monitoring those who operate or participate in prohibited online gambling (betting) platforms in Nepal. The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology issued a statement on Sunday, appealing to the public to report immediately if they have information about such illegal activities.

The ministry has appointed the Deputy Director of the Nepal Telecommunications Authority, Surya Prasad Lamichhane, as the contact person for complaints. The ministry has requested that if anyone finds out about the operation of a betting site or app, they should email [email protected] or contact the mobile number 9851153793. 

Communication and Information Technology Minister Bikram Timilsina had instructed that all betting sites be shut down within 24 hours on Sunday. Point no. 42 of the ‘100-point agenda for governance reform’ approved at the Cabinet meeting on 27 March states the complete closure of betting apps and websites. After Minister Timilsina directed the authority to implement this agenda, the blocking of sites has been accelerated in coordination with mobile and internet service providers. 

According to the Ministry's spokesperson, Uday Bahadur Ranamagar, 261 betting sites have been banned in the first phase. Spokesperson Ranamagar said, “This is a matter of gradually shutting them down rather than closing them all on the same day. The challenge is that if one is closed, another may operate from a different IP address, so correspondence has been sent to identify and block all of them.” 

The ministry has clarified that gambling or allowing others to gamble is a legal offense under Section 125 of the Muluki Criminal Code, 2017. Those who commit such an offense are liable to confiscation of property imprisonment for up to one year, and a fine of up to 10,000 rupees. The ministry, recalling the Advertisement (Regulation) Act, mentioned this in the press release:

“Similarly, Section 5, Subsection 1, Clause (b) of the Advertisement (Regulation) Act, 2019, also has the provision that advertisements that promote gambling or the purchasing and selling of lottery tickets without permission as per prevailing laws are prohibited. If someone violates this, the person causing the violation shall be subject to penalties according to prevailing law; if not specified, there is a provision for imprisonment of up to one year and a fine of up to 10,000 rupees.” 

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