After declaring to repeal the Meghalaya Gaming Act 2021 earlier this month, Taxation Minister James Sangma said today that a draft of an ordinance to repeal the Meghalaya gaming act is underway by the state government.

Sangma in his official statement said, “So this is the process whenever the Assembly is not in session. To enact any law or for that matter in this case to repeal an existing law it has to take the route of an ordinance.”

He also said, “We are doing due diligence because once we repeal we do not want any kind of legal wrangling or hassles. So we are making sure that we do everything in a very organized and systematic manner,” as repeal is much more complicated than introducing a new law.

The Meghalaya Gaming Act 2021 was formed to regulate all illegal casinos in the state and to prevent minors from joining in these activities, it was also a source of a tourist attraction with the aim to increase revenue from the tourism sector.

In recent months, there have been a lot of protests from different groups of people like The Joint Action Committee Against Casino (JACAC) and Church leaders of Khasi Jaintia Christian Leaders Forum (KJCLF) who were claiming that these casinos were having a bad influence on the youth and the general population of the state also wanted the act removed.

Sangma recently held a meeting with KJCLF leaders after which it was announced that the Meghalaya Gaming Act will be repealed through an ordinance. He said that it will be a step back from the government but they will have to move forward with what they have for now.