'Appointing Gaming Commissioner for Goa casinos a sham'

Panaji, Feb 1
The Goa government's decision to appoint a Gaming Commissioner to regulate the casino industry in Goa is a sham, state Congress president Girish Chodankar said on Saturday.

On January 30, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant had announced the setting up of a Gaming Commission, headed by a commissioner, to implement rules and regulations for the casino industry in Goa. Sawant had also said that from February 1, domiciled Goans would be banned from entering Goa's casinos.

Addressing a press conference in Panaji on Saturday, Chodankar said the Goa, Daman and Diu Public Gambling Act had already been amended by a BJP-led dispensation in 2012 to make way for the appointment of a Gaming Commissioner, but for eight years, no such official was appointed.

"The CM's announcement of appointing a Gaming commissioner is like throwing dust in the eyes of the people. The law was already amended in 2012 to appoint a Gaming Commissioner, but successive BJP governments did nothing to implement it," Chodankar told reporters.

"The BJP should now answer why despite amending the law in 2012, no rules were notified to allow for appointment of the Commissioner or for the official's functioning," he added.

There are currently six offshore and nine onshore casinos operating in Goa. While the offshore casinos function from glitzy boats anchored in the Mandovi river off Panaji, the onshore casinos function from the many five star hotels in the coastal tourism savvy state.