PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss has again urged the Governor to give his assent to the bill banning online gaming in Tamil Nadu and warned that if he does not listen, he will protest.
This latest move from Ramadoss came after two people recently took their own lives after losing a large among of borrowed money on online rummy. The people in talk here are Vinod Kumar who lost Rs 20 lakh and Suresh who lost around Rs 16 lakh playing online rummy.
In his latest tweet, Ramadoss said, “Two persons died due to online gaming in two days. This was the 47th death after the ordinance that banned online games lapsed. In 138 days after new ordinance declared, 18 suicides have occurred.”
ஆன்லைன் சூதாட்டத்தில் ரூ.16 லட்சத்தை இழந்த சென்னை கே.கே. நகரை அச்சக உரிமையாளர் சுரேஷ் என்பவர் மெரினா கடலில் குதித்து தற்கொலை செய்து கொண்டிருக்கிறார். அவரை நம்பியிருந்த மனைவியும், இரு குழந்தைகளும் ஆதரவற்றவர்களாகியுள்ளனர். அவர்களுக்கு எனது ஆறுதல்.(1/5)#OnlineGamblingKills
— Dr ANBUMANI RAMADOSS (@draramadoss) March 5, 2023
“The Governor and others in power should understand this pain. Even five months later, the Governor has yet to approve the Act banning online gaming. This amounts to insulting the people. He should approve immediately, or PMK will stage a huge protest against the Governor,” he said.
Vinod Kumar started winning a small amount of money from online rummy but got addicted and started wagering large amounts he borrowed through loan apps. In the case of Suresh, the police revealed that he played online rummy for the last three years and lost Rs 16 lakh borrowed from friends and loans.
Ramadoss has requested the Governor time and time to give his assent for the online gaming ban bill. The bill was initially introduced back in 2022 by the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly from an ordinance. Even the chief minister of Tamil Nadu has criticized the Governor for not giving his assent.
The bill considered online games like poker and rummy under the gambling category, despite being ruled skill-based games by the Supreme Court. Ramadoss believes banning these games will lead to an end to these cases.