Feature
Former Union Minister Jitin Prasada to fight election against Rajnath Singh in Lucknow
Lucknow: A day after he brushed aside as “hypothetical” the question whether he was planning to cross over to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress sources said on Saturday that former Union Minister Jitin Prasada may contest the Lok Sabha elections from Lucknow against Rajnath Singh of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
A party source close to Prasada told media persons: “He may contest the polls against Rajnath Singh from Lucknow.”
“The party is likely to shift him to Lucknow to give Rajnath Singh a tough fight,” the source said. It also refuted claims that Prasada may join the BJP ahead of the general elections.
The source also said the Congress has shifted state unit President Raj Babbar to Fatehpur Sikri. The party had earlier announced Babbar as its candidate from Moradabad.
Lucknow is considered a strong bastion of the saffron party as it has not lost a single election from here since 1991. Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had represented Lucknow from 1991 to 2004.
In 2009, the BJP’s Lalji Tandon won from the high profile constituency after Vajpayee retired from active politics.
Former Union Minister Jitin Prasada may take on Rajnath Singh during LS polls in Lucknow:
In 2014, Rajnath Singh contested from here and won by a huge margin against Congress’ Rita Bahuguna Joshi, who in October 2016 crossed over to the BJP.
The name of Prasada figured in the list of 11 candidates announced for the state on March 7.
According to party leaders, by fielding Prasada, who is a Brahmin, the Congress will eye to garner around 3.5 lakh votes of the community, which have gone away from it post the implementation of the Mandal Commission in 1991.
As per the 2011 census, Hindus constitute about 77 per cent of Lucknow’s population followed by Muslims (21 per cent), Brahmins (11 per cent) and Thakurs (8 per cent).
Prasada, who lost 2014 elections from the Dhaurahra constituency, was a Minister of State in the UPA-I and UPA-II governments led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. In 2004, he won from Shahjahanpur and in 2009 from Dhaurahra.
Prasada also contested the 2017 Assembly elections, but lost to Roshan Lal Verma of the BJP.
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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