Gujarat High Court hears from poker pros

Tuesday 29th of August 2017

The Gujarat High Court on Wednesday heard a clutch of special civil petitions pertaining to the legality of poker and whether the game involves a substantial degree of skill, Glaws reports.

Senior Counsel Mihir Thakore, while appearing for some of the petitioner clubs, gave a point by point rebuttal on the various foreign judgments from the government counsel stating that poker is a game of chance.

Thakore argued that the material relied upon by the government would not apply in the Indian context, given the previous precedents and wording of the Gujarat Prevention of Gambling Act.

In a unique and unprecedented move, Thakore also asked the judge to consider the representations made by two experienced poker players.

This was the first time in India’s legal history that experts who are neither lawyers nor party to the case were allowed to intervene in a constitutional case.

The two poker players showed the court two basic videos about the element of skill involved in the game of poker as well as the format and manner of playing the game.

The matter was thereafter adjourned to 1st September, where the two players will be again expected to make some representations on the practical elements of the game of poker and how it involves a great degree of skill.

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