Feature
SC frowns at delay in charging BSP lawmaker in murder case
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday frowned at the snail’s pace at which subordinate judiciary functions in north India when it comes to high and mighty, taking exception to non-framing of charges by a subordinate court in Uttar Pradesh against a lawmaker in a murder case even two decades after he was accused of the crime.
Noting that even after 20 long years, the charges have not been framed against the petitioner BSP legislative councillor Suraj Bhan Karwarriya and other murder accused, a bench of Justice M.Y.Eqbal and Justice C. Nagappan said: “It never happens in south (India). It is done in two months. It happens only in north.”
Justice Nagappan said: “Last night I was surprised, while going through the papers, (that) for 20 years, charges have not been framed.”
“Look at it from the institutional angle. In south India, it happens in two months. It (delay) happens only in north India.”
The court observation over the manner in which trial courts were proceeding in the matter involving VIPs came as senior counsel Sidharth Luthra, appearing for Karwarriya, mentioned the matter and urged the court to grant two months interim bail to his client so that he could organise the treatment of his ailing mother suffering from multiple old age-related diseases.
Saying that the pace at which subordinate courts worked in south was “admirable”, Luthra told the court that he was not seeking bail for his client but for his release so that he could personally arrange for his mother’s treatment.
“I am not asking for regular bail. All the three brothers are in custody,” Luthra said as he took the court through the medical reports of Karwarriya’s ailing mother who suffers from high blood pressure, diabetes and related diseases.
“Once you are out on bail, then the hearing on the framing of charges slated to commence from September 11 would not take place,” Justice Nagappan observed pointing that framing of charges requires the presence of all the accused.
“Why so much delay in the framing of charges,” the court asked Luthra, adding “If one of you is absent” then it can’t proceed.”
However, the counsel for the complainant opposed the plea saying that Karwarriya belonged to a powerful family and one of his brother was an MP and the other a legislator.
“They are a powerful family. One brother is MP, another MLA and the petitioner is MLC. They managed to dealy the framing of charges for 20 years. They don’t need any help (for the treatment of their mother),” said counsel for the complainant.
Pointing to the might of the Karwarriya family, counsel told the court that despite its direction earlier this year to expedite the framing of charges, it is only now scheduled to commence on September 11.
As Luthra tried to impress upon the court the urgency of the medical treatment required by his client’s mother, he told the court that petitioner Karwarriya’s two brothers were former lawmakers.
Permitting Luthra to serve the copy of Karwarriya’s petition on the standing counsel of Uttar Pradesh, the court said that it would hear the plea only on September 15 after trial court starts hearing on the framing of charges from September 11.
Karwarriya and others are accused of allegedly murdering the then Jhansi legislator Jawahar Pandit, of the Samajwadi Party, on August 13, 1996.
Pandit’s widow Vijma Yadav is currently represents the Pratappur assembly constituency.
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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