On Friday, December 08, Maharashtra’s Vidhan Sabha Assembly took a historic decision of repealing the Casinos (Control and Taxes) Act. The bill repealing the Act was presented in the assembly during the winter session, and was passed with majority vote.
MH’s deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis explained his stance regarding the legalization of casinos. Fadnavis said that the state government always believed in not allowing any form of enforcement legalizing the operation of casinos. Further, he said that repealing the Act was a move in the same direction.
In the assembly, Fadnavis said, “I had consistently taken a firm stand that no casino should be allowed in the state. The Casinos Act, which has been in place since 1976, has seen people frequently go to court to seek its enforcement. Even in 2016 when I was the Chief Minister, and also in January 2023, the same request was presented on the file. Considering the youth generation of Maharashtra, we took such a decision in the cabinet and finally today this bill was approved in the assembly.”
Watch what Fadnavis had to say, here:
महाराष्ट्रात कॅसिनो सुरूच होऊ नयेत, यासाठी 1976 चा कायदा रद्द
या विधेयकामुळे महाराष्ट्र कॅसिनो कायदा कायमस्वरुपी रद्द होणार आहे. राज्यात कॅसिनो नकोच, ही ठाम भूमिका सातत्याने मी घेतली होती. 1976 पासून अस्तित्त्वात असलेल्या कायद्यामुळे त्याची परवानगी मागण्यासाठी लोक वारंवार… pic.twitter.com/MlWmvC5SyS— Devendra Fadnavis (Modi Ka Parivar) (@Dev_Fadnavis) December 8, 2023
A few people have already started criticizing the government’s decision. Saying that the party officials themselves play casino abroad, people trolled Chandrashekhar Bawankule, who was captured at a casino in Macau, China recently. They said that if BJP officials are so hobbyist of casino, they should legalize it in the state itself.
Speaking of the Casinos Act, the issue has seen a lot of debates in the past. Many have even raised questions regarding the enforceability in the past. However, the firm stance of Maharashtra government has remained unaltered.
Currently, it is certain that no establishment of casinos will be seen in Maharashtra. It is safe to say that the bill passed will stay as it is for the longest possible time.
