Bill passed to ban online gambling to be sent to Guv today

CHENNAI: A Bill to ban online gambling which was passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly for the second time will be sent to Governor R N Ravi today (Friday).

The Governor is scheduled to return to Chennai this evening from Delhi after meeting Union Minister Amit Shah, after which the Bill will be sent to the Raj Bhavan.

Earlier, the Online Gambling Prohibition Bill was passed in the Tamil Nadu Assembly on 19th October 2022 and sent to the Governor for approval. Ravi returned it claiming the Assembly had “no legislative competence”, and the Bill went against “several judicial pronouncements.”

Moving the Bill, Chief Minister MK Stalin told the House that it was regrettable to note that 41 persons have committed suicide after losing money in online gaming. “These deaths are happening in front of our eyes. This government, which has the law in its hands, has the duty and responsibility to stop this,” the CM said.

Realising this responsibility, the government set up a panel led by a retired judge of the Madras High Court Justice K Chandru for advising the government on drafting a new law, and the committee presented its report.