The Meghalaya government on Thursday said that it will repeal the law that legalised certain forms of gambling in the state.
The Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act, 2021, made way for casinos to boost tourism in the state. The law had reversed the state’s decades-old ban on most forms of gambling.
Since the rule came to force, Opposition parties, Hynniewtrep Youth Council and church groups had demanded the repeal of the law. They said that the legitimisation of gambling will have negative effects on the quality of life and increase criminality.
“The introduction of casinos will affect so many dimensions of human lives and communities,” EH Kharkongor, secretary of the Khasi Jaintia Christian Leaders Forum had told Scroll.in. “It will promote violence, drugs-related incidents, flesh-trade and violent crimes and so many other immoral and criminal activities.”
On September 12, the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government said that three firms were given temporary licences to operate casinos, reported the Shillong Times. It led to more criticism from the Opposition and religious groups.
Chief Minister Conrad Sangma had then assured that the government had halted the process to start casinos. The temporary licences, issued before the talks, will “lapse automatically”, he had said.
State Cabinet minister and National People’s Party leader James Sangma said on Thursday that the government decided to scrap the law after holding discussions with religious and non-governmental organisations and civil society representatives.
Following meetings with stakeholders, it became clear to me it is in the best interest of our State to completely scrap the Act. Therefore, it will be my earnest endeavour to see that the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act, 2021, will be repealed. pic.twitter.com/vTC1aKmBri
— James K Sangma (@JamesSangma1) October 13, 2022
The now-repealed law aimed to introduce licences and regulations for “games of skill”, where a player’s skill determines the game rather than luck, such as backgammon, poker and bingo. It also sought to regulate “games of chance”, where luck mattered over skills, such as baccarat, roulette and the three-card game. Both online and offline games are mentioned.
However, the law did not mention “teer”, a game of archery where the players place bets on the number of arrows that stick to the target at the end of each round. Those who opposed the new gambling law did not object to teer, arguing that the game has deep cultural roots in the Khasi community, combining art, entertainment and skill.