Feature
Mulayam Singh Yadav blames media, voters for defeat in UP polls
Lucknow: Samajwadi Party patron Mulayam Singh Yadav today blamed the media and voters for the party’s electoral loss in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls but the state BJP said that he was “putting a question mark on the wisdom of the people of the state”.
Yadav claimed that the media only highlighted the family feud in the Samajwadi Party, while the people of Uttar Pradesh were “befooled” by the BJP.
“Despite rendering a good performance (by the Akhilesh Yadav government), the voters inflicted a defeat to the SP.
The people were befooled by call of Chal Modi-Chal Modi, and they went with the BJP.
“The media only gave prominence to the family feud of the Samajwadi Party family. If the media had shown anarchy during the SP rule, it must highlight the same during regime of other parties as well,” Yadav said while speaking to reporters in Etawah.
On the issue of change of leadership in the party following the drubbing in the UP Assembly polls in which SP got 47 seats, he said that for him the post of party chief is “meaningless”.
“Which post did socialist ideologues Ram Manohar Lohia and Jai Prakash Narayan hold?,” he asked.
The SP patron also categorically mentioned that whatever be his next step, it would be in the interest of the party and people.
The state BJP said that the statement made by the SP chief indicated that he has not been able to digest the SP’s electoral loss in the UP Assembly polls.
“SP patron Mulayam Singh Yadav has not only questioned the decision of the voters of UP, but also raised questions on the wisdom of the people of the state,” UP BJP spokesperson Manish Shukla told media persons.
Shukla claimed that similar statements were made by the SP patron, after the BJP registered a landslide win in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
“The people of Uttar Pradesh have given a historic verdict in favour of the BJP. Instead of questioning the wisdom of the people of the state, the SP should introspect the reasons for its defeat, the mis-governance unleashed by it and the rampant corruption, which prevailed during its rule, else the SP will not be able to retain even its family bastions in 2019 Lok Sabha elections,” the BJP spokesperson said.
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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