Shillong, Sept 21: Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong has ruled out scrapping the gaming Act.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Tynsong said the government has already put a stop to the proposal for setting up of casinos in the state.but added that the gaming Act will not be repealed.
“If the stakeholders say no it means no. If you talk in terms of revenue generation, yes it is true if we set up casinos it will be there but at the same time we need to respect the sentiments of the people of the state. That is why the chief minister has made it categorically clear that we put a full stop on casinos”, he said.
To a query,Tynsong asked why should the government repeal the gaming act.
“All activities which are totally unlawful, we need to regulate, regulation is required, act is required it has to be in place,” he said.
The deputy chief minister said the public is only against setting up of casinos and not the gambling Act.
“So be it bull fight, be it fishing competition, be it jackpot, there are so many so therefore what we did from the government side, we regulate it, we bring in the law, they cannot do whatever they like, it should be within the framed guidelines, rules, but do it in a manner which is not going beyond the legality,” he said.
MeECL,rice scam reports
The government assured to circulate the inquiry reports into the rice scam and irregularities in the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL) to the legislators of the state.
Tynsong said that the decision was taken after some of the MLAs had raised the issue during the just concluded Autumn Session of the State Assembly.
“The government, hence, decided that both these reports will be sent to all the MLAs be it MeECL report or be it rice scam report – the political department will do the needful,” Tynsong said.
It was on March 29 this year that the Independent Inquiry Committee headed by retired Justice RN Mishra had submitted its report into the alleged irregularities in the MeECL to the Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, in New Delhi.
The independent inquiry committee headed by Justice (Retired) Mool Chand Garg, Madhya Pradesh High Court had probed the rice scam after the rice allotted to Continental Milkcose (India) Ltd for the supplementary nutrition program (SNP) was found in a private godown in Boko, Assam which was seized by Assam police.
