Feature
Take appropriate steps in Vyapam: SC tells STF
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday permitted the Special Task Force (STF) to take “appropriate steps” under the Code of Criminal Procedure against the Vyapam accused so that they do not take advantage of delayed action and seek bail.
“Keeping in view the urgency of the matter, we permit the SIT/STF to take appropriate proceedings against the persons mentioned in the memo at serial number 1 to 245 in accordance with law and in accordance with the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure,” an apex court bench of Chief Justice H.L. Dattu, Justice Arun Mishra and Justice Amitava Roy said.
The court was told that there were 245 accused who could take advantage of the situation if the Special Investigation Team/Special Task Force was not allowed to pursue the court cases till the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took over.
Appearing for the SIT/STF, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi told the court that they were ready to deal with the cases at hand but that would be contrary to the court’s orders.
Giving three days’ time to the petitioners, including senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, to file their responses to CBI plea seeking modification of the July 9 order, the court directed the listing of the matter on Friday when the investigating agency will also indicate by what time it would complete the task of taking over the Vyapam cases.
The court order came on an application by the CBI to seek modification of its July 9 order by which it had handed over the Vyapam investigation to the investigative agency.
The CBI sought that the SIT/STF investigating the matter may be permitted to file charge sheets in the cases as it would take some time before the Vyapam case records are transferred to the central agency.
Appearing for the CBI, Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar told the court that the intervening period should not be allowed to be taken advantage of by the accused whose remand period was coming to an end, seeking default bail in case charge sheet was not filed within 90 days of their arrest or their bail applications went uncontested or plea for extension of their remand was pressed.
The Supreme Court on July 9 directed the CBI to take over the Vyapam investigation from July 13.
The CBI plea for the modification of the July 9 order was resisted by senior counsel Kapil Sibal, who expressed his apprehension that the central agency may take six months in taking over the Vyapam cases.
“He (CBI) will not take over (the Vyapam cases) for six months,” Sibal appearing for the petitioner and senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh said, adding “let them (CBI) come to the court on a case-to-case basis. There can’t be an omnibus order.”
Chief Justice Dattu asked Sibal, “Do you want them (accused) to be released on bail.”
“We will prefer them to be released on bail than closure reports being filed by the STF,” Sibal said, telling the court that “if you allow them (SIT/STF) to file charge sheet, you are diluting the order.”
“If they (SIT/STF) are continuing, then what is the point of transfer (of Vyapam cases to CBI),” Sibal said while urging the court to ask the CBI “by when they will complete the takeover of cases”.
Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar urged the court not to let the accused take advantage of the situation whereby, given the voluminous nature of Vyapam case records, the CBI would need time to take them over and the SIT/STF would keep off the cases.
Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board or Vyavsayik Pariksha Mandal (Vyapam) scam pertains to recruitment to certain government jobs as well as admissions to professional colleges in the state.
More than 40 people connected with the scam have died, either under mysterious circumstances or have committed suicide.
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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