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Kapil Sibal claims ‘No chance’ of Congress getting majority in LS polls
New Delhi: There is “no chance” of the Congress getting a majority on its own in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, senior party leader Kapil Sibal has said but asserted that the UPA led by the party is intact and the coalition could be in a position to form the next government.
Had the Congress been sure about getting the majority number of 272 in the Lok Sabha, it would have definitely declared Rahul Gandhi as its Prime Ministerial candidate as he is the “undisputed leader” in the party, he told media persons in an interview here.
He, however, remained evasive on who could be the Prime Minister if the UPA were to get the majority, saying it will be decided by the alliance after the results are declared.
Sibal, a prominent lawyer and former Union Minister, was asked why the Congress is reluctant to declare Gandhi as its Prime Ministerial candidate.
“If the Congress were to get 272 (seats), there would be no hesitation,” he replied.
When insisted that the Congress could still project Gandhi as its Prime Ministerial candidate and say that he would be the Prime Minister if the party gets the majority, he shot back: “Without any doubt… If we get the majority, is there any doubt?… (But) there is no question of saying it. We know we won’t get the majority. We know we won’t get 272 (seats), just as we know that the BJP will not get more than 160 seats.”
When pointed out to him that he was making a big statement, he responded: “Why not? Of course, we will not get (the majority). There is no chance.”
Sibal was asked again whether he wanted to say that Congress will not get the majority, to which he replied: “We will not get 272 on our own. It will be foolish for me to say that. And BJP will get less than 160.”
At the same time, he said the Congress-led UPA will be ahead in the elections and could form the government even as it has to fight out with ‘mahagathbandan’, an alliance of some Opposition parties, in states like Uttar Pradesh.
‘No chance’ of Congress getting majority in LS polls predicts Kapil Sibal:
Asked who could be the Prime Minister if the Congress-led UPA gets the majority, Sibal said it will be decided by the alliance. “…All that will happen after May 23 (when results are declared).”
Queried if there could be anybody else than Gandhi, he said: “I don’t know. The alliance will decide… It is something that alliance partners will have to decide.
As far as Congress party is concerned, he (Rahul) is the undisputed leader in the Congress party. Let’s be clear on that.”
On questions regarding the efficacy of the ‘mahagathbandan’, Sibal said it was “never floated by the Congress”.
“Our ‘gathbandans’ are intact. Ours is a party which is gathbandan (alliance) plus. All our gathbandans existing prior to 2014 are intact, whether it is NCP or DMK… We have added two more – JDS in Karnataka and CPI-M in West Bengal.”
When pointed out that the Samajwadi Party (SP), which was earlier with the Congress, has drifted away and joined hands with Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP),
Sibal said: “That is not our fault. Our alliance partners are intact. We have not let down any of them but we have added our alliance partners.”
He said alliance with the Samajwadi Party could have happened if that party had “recognised our importance as a national party”.
“But (BSP chief) Mayawati consistently opposed it. They distributed seats among themselves and said we have left two seats for the Congress. How can then there be an alliance?”
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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