Feature
Jaitley assures banks of action against Mallya
New Delhi: The government on Thursday in his speech told the Parliament about their plans of action against beleaguered liquor baron Vijay Mallya. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday also countered Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi’s allegations saying that the sanctioning of loan took place during the UPA regime.
Jaitley said in the Lok Sabha during Zero Hour that Mallya, as of end of November 2015, owed about Rs.90 billion to the banks in the country.
He was responding to the issue raised by Congress floor leader Mallikarjun Kharge, who wanted to know why the government did not “confiscate” the passport of the chief of the now defunct Kingfisher Airlines.
The Congress leader wanted to know why the government and State Bank of India did not act against Mallya on time, which helped him to flee.
Jaitley said every member of the house shares the concern raised by Kharge, but said the sanction of money to Mallya was made during the UPA regime.
“The banks have started taking action against the companies to recover the debt. Certainly every possible action will be taken against all the defaulters,” Jaitley said in the Lok Sabha.
“Some cases were filed in different courts across the country and some counter-cases were also registered,” he added.
Jaitley also said that as of end of November 30, 2015, the total dues compounding with interest stands to the tune of over Rs.9,000 crore against Vijay Mallya’s companies.
“As far as accounts are concerned, first sanction was made by the consortium of banks in September 2004,” he said, adding then again in 2008. “These dates speak for themselves,” he said.
Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Rajiv Pratap Rudy said Mallya is “no saint” for the NDA regime.
Dissatisfied with Jaitley’s reply over Mallya leaving the country, the Congress and the Left parties staged a walkout.
Countering Rahul Gandhi’s allegation, Jaitley later told reporters: “Rahul Gandhi should understand that going away of Ottavio Quattrocchi and Vijay Mallya is not the same. When CBI had alerted government about Quattrocchi, it was a criminal case and the then government did not stop him.”
Quattrocchi was an Italian businessman who was sought until 2009 in India for criminal charges of acting as a conduit for bribes in the Bofors scandal.
Jaitley said there is a legal procedure on impounding a passport and action could be taken only based on the provisions of the Passport Act.
“If Rahul Gandhi does not understand this, you can help him,” Jaitley told the media.
On the actions the government will take in the Vijay Mallya case, the finance minister said: “According to me, let the banks take all steps to recover money. If somebody’s action or inaction is found, the government will look into it.”
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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