Tamil Nadu ordinance on banning online gambling expires for want of Governor’s assent
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The Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Ordinance expired on Sunday night for want of Governor’s assent to the Bill approved by the Tamil Nadu Assembly last month.
This has sparked a new conflict between the state government and Governor R N Ravi on a day the state reported another death by suicide at Tenkasi, allegedly due to losses in online gambling.
Tamil Nadu’s Law Minister S Ragupathy on Monday said that the Ordinance had expired as a result of the delay in the Governor’s assent. “He [Governor] had asked some queries, and he got answers in a day. We expected him to agree after that, but there was no response,” he said.
“The Governor alone knows why he failed to give assent to the Bill. Majority of the people wish to ban online gambling… the DMK government has taken all possible legal steps on these lines to put an end to this,” Ragupathy said.
The delay in assent from the Governor drew criticism from many political parties. The Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam’s (AMMK) T T V Dhinakaran said that the delay was unjust to the entire procedure. “The beauty of the Governor’s position is destroyed by such delays. No matter whichever political party is in power in the state, the Governor should have approved this Bill,” he said.
Article 213 (2) (a) of the Constitution states that an ordinance “shall cease to operate at the expiration of six weeks from the reassembly of the Legislature”. The Tamil Nadu Assembly’s fourth session began on October 17. The period of six weeks is calculated from the date in question (October 17) and this is why the ordinance lapsed on Sunday in the absence of the Governor’s approval. The Bill becomes an Act from the date the Governor approves it.
Dravidar Kazhagam (DK) member K Veeramani contested Governor’s “lack of concern” for a significant government decision, citing rise in the suicide rate due to online gambling in Tamil Nadu.
The government had established a committee under former Madras High Court judge K Chandru to investigate the rise in suicides. In June 2022, the committee had recommended banning online games.
Since 2020, at least 30 suicides in Tamil Nadu have been linked to losses in online gaming. A 22-year-old migrant worker, Pandhana Maji, from Odisha, ended his life at Tenkasi in southern Tamil Nadu on Monday allegedly after suffering losses in online gaming.
The Tamil Nadu Assembly’s fourth session began on October 17. The period of six weeks is calculated from the date in question (October 17) and this is why the ordinance lapsed on Sunday in the absence of the Governor’s approval. The Bill becomes an Act from the date the Governor approves it.
