Chief Minister Conrad Sangma today said that provisional licences issued to get casinos going in Meghalaya was given as no one has raised any opposition to the matter.
Replying to a zero hour notice moved by Nongrkrem MLA Lambor Malngiang, he said those licences were issued out of the eight applicants received, on March 29 will and will expire on September 29.
The introduction of casinos in Meghalaya has been under fire, with attacks from church groups, pressure groups and other citizens. This despite the government’s plan to restrict casinos to tourists only.
As a result of the intense opposition, the government decided not to go ahead with the casino project, though there was confusion caused by a statement by Taxation Minister James PK Sangma in the house this week when he mentioned that three temporary licences were issued.
The issue was obfuscated somewhat because the government always spoke only about gaming and never gambling in relation to the act, which kept the public in the dark.
Malngiang had stated that the government should scrap the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act and cancel the licences. However, the Chief Minister said the legislation is still necessary, because there are plenty of gaming parlours that were operating outside the law before this act was brought in.
Regulation would also bring in more revenue for the exchequer, he said.
