In a major move to safeguard the social, financial, and moral fabric of Pakistan, a citizen has filed a writ petition before the Islamabad High Court, seeking ban online gambling applications in Pakistan.
Chaudhry Tabir ul Haq, a resident of Islamabad, has approached the IHC under Article 199 of the Constitution, urging immediate and decisive action against the proliferation of illegal gambling applications such as Betway, 1xBet, Bet365, and others, which are reportedly operating unchecked in Pakistan through digital payment platforms and deceptive online marketing.
The petition filed through Barrister Imran Rashid and Advocate Waheed Ur Rehman Qureshi names multiple key federal institutions as respondents, including the Federation of Pakistan through Ministry of Interior, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), and Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA).
The petition highlights how gambling operators are exploiting loopholes in the digital payments ecosystem, using platforms like Easypaisa, JazzCash, and SadaPay to enable illegal betting transactions disguised as regular peer-to-peer or business transfers.
It is alleged that this not only violates Islamic injunctions and national laws, including the Public Gambling Act, 1867, Pakistan Penal Code, and Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2010, but also facilitates money laundering and financial fraud on a massive scale.
The petition accuses the PTA of failing to block gambling platforms under its powers granted by PECA 2016, while the SBP and FIA are criticized for their inaction in monitoring and investigating illegal financial flows linked to gambling.
Relying on constitutional provisions such as Articles 2-A, 3, 37(g), and 227, the petitioner calls for a court directive to ban gambling applications, block online advertisements promoting gambling, and implement stricter oversight mechanisms over financial service providers.
The petition also highlights the moral, psychological, and economic damage caused by these platforms, particularly among youth and vulnerable segments of society. It warns that failure to act could tarnish Pakistan’s standing with international watchdogs like the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), given the alleged links to cross-border money laundering and cryptocurrency misuse.
The petitioner prays the court to direct the PTA to immediately ban and block access to all gambling websites, apps, and advertisements; instruct SBP and digital financial service providers to detect and prevent gambling-related transactions; order the FIA to investigate and prosecute all those involved in facilitating online gambling; direct PEMRA to ban gambling advertisements and launch nationwide awareness campaigns and take any other measures the Court deems fit to protect public interest and uphold constitutional mandates.