Samir Patel, a club owner in the Indian state of Gujarat who petitioned the local High Court for a ‘no objection certificate’ or a licence to operate a poker room on grounds that poker and rummy are games predominantly of skill and not chance, and aer therefore not gambling, has been rebuffed by the court.
Gujarat High Court Judge J.B.Pardiwala dismissed the petition at the admission stage Friday.
More bad news for poker and rummy advocates may be on the way; Justice Rajesh Shukla and a panel of Gujarat High Court judges is due to deliver a verdict on the poker and rummy legality issue this week following civil applications filed earlier this year by the Indian Poker Association, AAA Gaming, Hotel Ramada, Dominance Games Pvt. Ltd. and other poker clubs.