Feature
Sonia Gandhi’s Mahagathbandhan partners Akhilesh-Mayawati most prominent faces
New Delhi: Gathbandhan partners Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav could be the most prominent faces of Sonia Gandhi’s much talked- about May 23 meeting.
Neutral players Naveen Patnaik and K Chandrashekhar Rao are also being approached.
In a bid to muster the support of old friends and lead the opposition front, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi has sent letters to all key players, including former Uttar Pradesh chief ministers, Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav, for the May 23 meeting, the day results of the Lok Sabha elections are to be announced.
Letters have also been shot off to key allies, DMK and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) for working out instant strategies to stake claim for forming the government at the Centre, in case the NDA, led by incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi falls short of the majority mark.
Among those who have confirmed their participation at the meeting are NCP’s Sharad Pawar and M.K. Stalin of the DMK.
Sonia Gandhi had almost taken the back seat after Rahul Gandhi was elected President of the Congress. However, as the election results draw closer, she returns to take the leadership role to forge a grand opposition alliance which had unfortunately failed last year.
Besides neutral players such as Naveen Patnaik of the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and K. Chandrashekhar Rao of the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS), Sonia Gandhi is eyeing the support of Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav who are expected to secure big numbers if the caste chemistry of votes succeeds in the cow belt.
Party sources said that Sonia Gandhi has stepped into alliance building efforts even before the results are out. She has reportedly been in touch with both Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav and also West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
Gathbandhan partners Akhilesh-Mayawati most prominent faces of Sonia Gandhi’s meeting
Despite remaining out of the pre-poll alliance (gathbandhan) in Uttar Pradesh, Congress leaders have been in constant touch with the BSP and SP leadership.
During the poll campaign in UP, Rahul Gandhi chose to remain silent on Mayawati and Akhilesh while launching an open attack on the BJP and RSS.
In several seats in the state, the Congress fielded candidates from the upper castes to cut into the vote bank of the saffron party. In return, the gathbandhan did not contest Rae Bareli and Amethi, the traditional seats held by the Gandhi family. Now Sonia Gandhi’s latest communique to Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav makes it evident that the gathbandhan leaders are also keen to join the UPA to consolidate opposition fraternity.
Speaking to media persons, the national spokesperson of Samajwadi Party, I.P. Singh said the gathbandhan would be the ultimate winner in Uttar Pradesh and would secure at least 60 seats making the SP-BSP alliance the biggest challenger to the BJP. “Akhileshji has the highest regard for Soniaji and our party will certainly play an important role in government formation after May 23,” said Singh.
In its latest internal poll survey, SP has been expecting around 26 seats (out of 37 being contested), though it appears to be an elevated number in the wake of Prime Minister Modi’s marathon rallies in the state after the second phase.
Sources said in the proposed meeting Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati would be the prominent faces besides Sharad Pawar, N. Chandrababu Naidu and M.K.
Stalin who are certain to be present. Sources said Congress leaders, particularly Ahmed Patel, are also reaching out to Naveen Patnaik and K Chandrashekhar Rao. Efforts are also being made to approach YSRCP’s Jaganmohan Reddy.
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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