Feature
Vindicated by CAG report, but continue to suffer: Khemka
Chandigarh: Senior IAS officer of Haryana cadre Ashok Khemka on Thursday said his action of cancelling a multi-million-rupee land deal between Robert Vadra, son-in-law of Congress president Sonia Gandhi, with realty giant DLF, has been “vindicated” by a CAG report.
Khemka tweeted: “My action in VADRA-DLF land-license deal vindicated in CAG report, but continue to suffer the stigma of chargesheet.”
Khemka, however, questioned the CAG report and said: “Many issues untouched in the CAG report. Cycle of corruption involved the triad – business, politics and bureaucracy.”
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report, tabled in the Haryana assembly on the last day of the budget session which ended on Wednesday, blamed Haryana’s previous Congress government led by then chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda for showing undue favours to Vadra in his land deal with DLF.
Vadra’s company, Skylight Hospitality, sold a prime 3.5 acre of land in Manesar, Gurgaon, to DLF in 2008 for Rs.58 crore. The land had, however, only cost his company around Rs.15 crore and was sold to DLF after obtaining change of land use (CLU) and other permissions from the Hooda government.
Vadra made a clear Rs.43 crore but did not share the profits with Haryana’s town and country planning department.
The report said the “possibility of extending undue benefit to particular applicant (Vadra’s company) cannot be ruled out.” It has also questioned the “distinction” made by the Hooda government for Vadra’s company in giving permissions.
Khemka, who had ordered the scrapping of the land deal saying, that it was illegal, was transferred and served a chargesheet for his actions by the Hooda government, which gave Vadra a clean chit.
“Real culprits sit in judgment over me. My pain and suffering may help to detox and cleanse the body politic,” he tweeted, without naming anyone.
With reference to the new BJP government in Haryana, Khemka questioned whether those involved in wrongdoings in land deals and looting public money would face any action.
“Black-marketing of licenses and permits to cronies is loot of public wealth. Will action be taken against the black-marketers?” he asked.
Khemka is the secretary and commissioner of Haryana’s transport department.
The CAG has indicated that the Hooda government had obliged Vadra with quick sanction of the permissions required. Some other companies being favoured also figured in the CAG report.
The controversy became a national issue with opposition parties alleging that the then Congress government was doing everything to help Vadra in his land deals in the National Capital Region and areas around Delhi.
Vadra had bought land in four districts of Gurgaon, Palwal, Faridabad and Mewat in Haryana adjoining Delhi.
Alleging that Vadra’s land deals caused loss of crores of rupees to the state exchequer, Khemka marked a probe into all land deals of Vadra and his companies since 2005.
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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