After decades of approval of the Maharashtra Casino (Control and Tax) Act, that law was finally repealed officially at the weekly Cabinet meeting, ending the long-lasting failure to implement the law.
Despite the fact that this Casino Act was never implemented, this is another blow to the gambling industry in India after the government’s decision to impose a 28% tax on online gambling in the country.
Why Was the Maharashtra Casino Act Repealed?
In 1976, the legislature passed the Maharashtra Casinos (Control and Tax) Act. This act was supposed to provide a frame for control and taxation of casinos in the state, legalising them in the process.
However, strong opposition to casinos coming from different sides made the Casino Act stay in the same phase for 47 years, with one government after another never even trying to implement this new law due to fear of backlash.
Had the Casino Act been implemented, Maharashtra would’ve joined a few other states in India where casinos are fully legal, but that is now officially not happening.
Maharashtra Cabinet Officially Scraps the Casino Act of 1976
The decision to repeal the Casino Act was taken at the Cabinet meeting presided over by CM Eknath Shinde in Mumbai. CM Shinde and Deputy Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar were against it.
Still, the decision was made and Maharashtra now officially moves back on their intention to legalise casinos in the state in another blow to India’s gambling industry.
