Kalshi And Polymarket Banned In India: Government Prohibits Real-Money Prediction And Betting Platforms

Indian Government is likely to formally ban Kalshi which is a US based prediction market platform, weeks after the platform was supposed to have stopped being accessible in India after regulatory restriction. Kalshi allows users to make bets on various kinds of predictions ranging from sports to elections, even peace deals. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) is likely to send a blocking order to Kalshi as early as Friday. MeitY has already sent a similar order to Polymarket which is another prediction market platform. 

What Are Prediction Markets and Why Are They Banned in India 

Prediction markets are platforms where users bet real money on the outcome of future events. These can range from who wins an election, whether a peace deal is signed, how a stock market index moves, or the result of a cricket match. These platforms saw a massive surge in global popularity during the 2024 US presidential election, becoming a major venue for people to bet on political outcomes. 

India’s position on these platforms became completely clear on May 1, 2026, when the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, known as PROGA, came into force. The law was passed by both houses of Parliament in August 2025 and received Presidential assent the same month. Under PROGA, prediction markets are classified as online money games, which are fully prohibited in India. 

How Both Platforms Kept Running Despite the Ban 

The interesting thing here is that neither Kalshi nor Polymarket quietly shut down after the government issued its orders. Both platforms continued to allow Indian users to sign up and trade on their prediction markets through mirror sites despite the ban. A mirror site is an exact copy of a website hosted on a separate server, usually under a different URL, to get around blocking orders. 

MeitY sent a letter dated April 25, 2026, to VPN service providers, warning that users were accessing illegal and blocked prediction market and online betting platforms despite domestic prohibitions. The advisory pointed specifically to Polymarket and similar prediction markets, which were supposed to have been cut off by internet providers. That warning was not enough to stop access. 

What the Blocking Order Actually Means 

The blocking order will be issued under Section 69A of the IT Act, which empowers the government to restrict access to online content. This is the same legal mechanism used to block other apps and websites in India. Once the order is enforced, internet service providers across the country will be required to stop users from reaching these platforms directly. 

Polymarket has already gone dark for users in India. The website currently shows a “this site can’t be reached” message for those trying to access it without a VPN. Kalshi is expected to follow very soon. 

What About Other Gaming Platforms in India 

The crackdown on Kalshi and Polymarket is part of a much larger shift in how India regulates online gaming. Games like RummyCircle’s rummy, Adda52’s poker, and Dream11’s fantasy cricket, previously protected as skill games, are now also affected under the new law. PROGA draws a clear three-way line between e-sports which are skill-based and allowed, social games which are non-monetary and allowed, and online money games which are completely prohibited. 

Local platforms including Probo have already shut down, citing financial liability under the new rules. The message from the government is consistent: if real money is involved in predicting outcomes, it falls under the ban. 

Can Users Still Access These Platforms 

Technically, yes, for now. A VPN or DNS change can still get around a blocking order, and many users are aware of this. Polymarket continues to operate without identity verification, allowing Indian users to bypass local internet blocks through VPNs or DNS changes. However, using a blocked platform through a VPN in India sits in a legal grey area, and the government has already written to VPN providers asking them to stop enabling access to these services. 

India Is Not Alone in Banning These Platforms 

India is not the first country to move against prediction markets. Kalshi’s Brazil launch was blocked by the government almost immediately after it tried to enter that market. Brazilian regulators imposed a nationwide ban on non-financial prediction markets, ordering telecom providers to block platforms including Polymarket and Kalshi. Multiple US states including Nevada and Tennessee have also taken enforcement action against Polymarket in recent months. 

The global picture is becoming clearer. Prediction markets may be legal and regulated in the United States, but that approval does not travel well to other countries with stricter gambling and gaming laws. 

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