Feature
BJP sweeps Delhi civic polls, AAP alleges EVM tampering
New Delhi: The BJP was today set to retain the three municipal corporations in the national capital for the third term in a row, handing a humiliating defeat to the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP and the Congress.
As per the Delhi State Election Commission, the Bharatiya Janata Party so far has won 143 seats and is leading in 31 seats, the Aam Aadmi Party was a distant second having won 35 seats and leading in 16, while the Congress has won so far only 22 seats and is leading in 4.
In the East Delhi Municipal Corporation, the BJP has won 37 wards and is leading in nine. In the South Delhi Municipal Corporation, it won 53 wards and is leading in 12, while in the North Delhi Municipal Corporation, the saffron party has won 53 and is leading in 10.
While the BJP credited its continued electoral success to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the AAP reiterated its allegations that EVMs were rigged in favour of the BJP-an accusation it has been levelling since its defeat in Punjab and Goa assembly polls.
The Congress drubbing saw its Delhi unit Chief Ajay Maken announcing his resignation from the post owning up moral responsibility for the defeat, while veteran party leader and former Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit put the onus of defeat squarely on local leaders.
The AAP’s defeat comes more than two years after the Delhi Assembly elections where it humiliated the BJP, winning 67 of the 70 Delhi assembly polls.
“Without rigging, such a massive win is not possible,” AAP leader and Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia told reporters.
He said it was “unbelievable” that the BJP could return to power in the civic bodies with such a massive win even as the MCD in the last 10 years had failed to maintain the upkeep of the city.
The BJP dismissed the allegations with Union Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu saying that the AAP failed to understand the mood of the nation.
“He (Kejriwal) was not ready to perform… He did not want to work with the central government. He did not understand the mood of the nation. The mood of the nation is ‘Modi’,” Naidu said.
AAP MLA Alka Lamba, who represents Chandni Chowk constituency in central Delhi, offered to resign from all party posts taking moral responsibility for the party’s defeat in the municipal seats falling under her constituency.
The poll win is the latest in a series of BJP election victories credited largely to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
BJP President Amit Shah termed the party’s resounding win in the civic polls as another public endorsement of Modi’s leadership and rule and a vote against the “negative politics” of the AAP.
Modi expressed his gratitude to the people of Delhi for the resounding win.
Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari said the party will not celebrate the victory but “dedicate” it to the 25 CRPF troopers who died in a Maoist attack in Sukma.
Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken took moral responsibility for the party’s poor show and announced he was resigning from his post.
The win in Delhi’s civic polls has boosted the BJP’s prospects for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections after the party scored major electoral victories in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The party also formed new governments in Goa and Manipur.
The BJP chief said the Delhi verdict, coming close on the heels of his party’s success in the assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur, has only taken forward the “Modi and BJP juggernaut”.
The State Scores Extra High on Gaming-Friendly Industry Index
Meghalaya scored 92.85 out of 100 possible points in a Gaming Industry Index and proved to be India’s most gaming-friendly state following its recent profound legislation changes over the field allowing land-based and online gaming, including games of chance, under a licensing regime.
The index by the UK India Business Council (UKIBC) uses a scale of 0 to 100 to measure the level of legalisation on gambling and betting achieved by a state based on the scores over a set of seven different games – lottery, horse racing, betting on sports, poker, rummy, casino and fantasy sports
Starting from February last year, Meghalaya became the third state in India’s northeast to legalise gambling and betting after Sikkim and Nagaland. After consultations with the UKIBC, the state proceeded with the adoption of the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act, 2021 and the nullification of the Meghalaya Prevention of Gambling Act, 1970. Subsequently in December, the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021 were notified and came into force.
All for the Tourists
The move to legalise and license various forms of offline and online betting and gambling in Meghalaya is aimed at boosting tourism and creating jobs, and altogether raising taxation revenues for the northeastern state. At the same time, the opportunities to bet and gamble legally will be reserved only for tourists and visitors.
“We came out with a Gaming Act and subsequently framed the Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021. The government will accordingly issue licenses to operate games of skill and chance, both online and offline,” said James P. K. Sangma, Meghalaya State Law and Taxation Minister speaking in the capital city of Shillong. “But the legalized gambling and gaming will only be for tourists and not residents of Meghalaya,” he continued.
To be allowed to play, tourists and people visiting the state for work or business purposes will have to prove their non-resident status by presenting appropriate documents, in a process similar to a bank KYC (Know Your Customer) procedure.
Meghalaya Reaches Out to a Vast Market
With 140 millions of people in India estimated to bet regularly on sports, and a total of 370 million desi bettors around prominent sporting events, as per data from one of the latest reports by Esse N Videri, Meghalaya is set to reach out and take a piece of a vast market.
Estimates on the financial value of India’s sports betting market, combined across all types of offline channels and online sports and cricket predictions and betting platforms, speak about amounts between $130 and $150 billion (roughly between ₹9.7 and ₹11.5 lakh crore).
Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Delhi are shown to deliver the highest number of bettors and Meghalaya can count on substantial tourists flow from their betting circles. The sports betting communities of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are also not to be underestimated.
Among the sports, cricket is most popular, registering 68 percent of the total bet count analyzed by Esse N Videri. Football takes second position with 11 percent of the bets, followed by betting on FIFA at 7 percent and on eCricket at 5 percent. The last position in the Top 5 of popular sports for betting in India is taken by tennis with 3 percent of the bet count.
Local Citizens will Still have Their Teer Betting
Meghalaya residents will still be permitted to participate in teer betting over arrow-shooting results. Teer is a traditional method of gambling, somewhat similar to a lottery draw, and held under the rules of the Meghalaya Regulation of the Game of Arrow Shooting and the Sale of Teer Tickets Act, 2018.
Teer includes bettors wagering on the number of arrows that reach the target which is placed about 50 meters away from a team of 20 archers positioned in a semicircle.
The archers shoot volleys of arrows at the target for ten minutes, and players place their bets choosing a number between 0 and 99 trying to guess the last two digits of the number of arrows that successfully pierce the target.
If, for example, the number of hits is 256, anyone who has bet on 56 wins an amount eight times bigger than their wager.
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