App faces police case in Karnataka after introduction of gambling ban

News Network

October 10, 2021

An FIR has been launched against Dream11 for running its fantasy sports app despite Karnataka banning online gaming that involves stakes (money).

Dream11 is a partner of the Board of Control for Cricket in India and sponsors the Indian Premier League currently underway in the UAE.

Dream11 has been running its fantasy cricket app at a time when almost all top real money gaming operators like MPL, Paytm and My11Circle have stopped operations the moment the Karnataka Police Act 2021 came into effect on October 5. Apart from Dream11, the Jaipur-based popular fantasy app MyTeam11 is also available in Karnataka.

According to the FIR filed at the Annapoorneshwarinagar police station on Friday by one Manjunath, a resident of Nagarbhavi in Bengaluru, Bhavit Sheth and Harsh Jain, the founders and directors of Sporta Technologies Private Limited which promotes the Dream11 gaming app, have been booked as accused number one and two. The police have initiated action based on the complaint.

Dream11 did not comment on the FIR. It had been steadfastly refusing to answer questions on why it was running its fantasy app when all had stopped.

Industry sources told Outlook on Friday that Dream11 "has acquired explicit legal opinion from a reputed former Supreme Court judge to keep running its business in states that have outlawed online gaming involving stakes.

Dream11 has clearly split the real money gaming world. Platinum members, who belong to the Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports, are feeling betrayed that the 'solidarity' has been broken by the founders (Dream11) themselves.

"Internally at FIFS, we got the feeling it was all right to runs ours apps. Why stop it? But taking on the state by breaking the law would have been suicidal," said a senior management person of a top operator.

Interestingly, Dream11 app is accessible to some users in Telangana, Assam, Odisha and Arunachal Pradesh as well. These states have banned online games but have not initiated any action against Dream11.

Meanwhile, Dream11 has also left its subscribers in the lurch by not replying to messages on the fantasy app's status in Karnataka. Several tweets asking for clarification after the ban was imposed have gone unanswered.

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Campus politics: DKS pushes to restore student elections in Karnataka banned since 1989

News Network

November 26,2025

Bengaluru, Nov 26: Karnataka is taking its first concrete steps towards lifting a three-decade-old ban on student elections in colleges and universities. Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar announced Wednesday that the state government will form a small committee to study the reintroduction of campus polls, a practice halted in 1989 following incidents of violence.

Speaking at a 'Constitution Day' event organised by the Karnataka Congress, Mr. Shivakumar underscored the move's aim: nurturing new political leadership from the grassroots.

"Recently, (Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha) Rahul Gandhi wrote a letter to me and Chief Minister (Siddaramaiah) asking us to think about restarting student elections," Shivakumar stated. "I'm announcing today that we'll form a small committee and seek a report on this."

Student elections were banned in Karnataka in 1989, largely due to concerns over violence and the infiltration of political party affiliates into campus life. The ban effectively extinguished vibrant student bodies and the pipeline of young leaders they often produced.

Mr. Shivakumar, who also serves as the Karnataka Congress president, said that former student leaders will be consulted to "study the pros and cons" of the re-introduction.

Acknowledging the history of the ban, he added, "There were many criminal activities taking place back then. We’ll see how we can conduct (student) elections by regulating such criminal activities."

The Deputy CM reminisced about his own journey, which began on campus. He recalled his political activism at Sri Jagadguru Renukacharya College leading to his first Assembly ticket in 1985 at the age of 23. "That's how student leadership was at the time. Such leadership has gone today. College elections have stopped," he lamented, adding that for many, college elections were "like a big movement" where leaders were forged.

The move, driven by the Congress high command's push to cultivate young talent, will face scrutiny from academics and university authorities who have, in the past, expressed concern that the return of polls could disrupt the peaceful academic environment and turn campuses into political battlegrounds.

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