CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Law Minister S Regupathy on Thursday said that Governor RN Ravi will have no other option but to give his assent to the Bill proposing a ban on online rummy if the State Assembly decides to re-adopt it and re-sends it to him.
The Minister made the statement while responding to queries from reporters at the Chennai Airport about the Governor returning the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Bill.
The Minister also clarified that the Governor has returned the Bill for the first time and not the second time. Earlier, the Governor had raised some queries on the Bill and the State government had clarified them, he added.
Explaining what had happened so far on this issue, the Minister said the present Governor had given his assent to the ordinance to ban online Rummy and that his predecessor had also given his assent to the legislation enacted by the AIADMK government to ban online rummy.
“When that legislation was challenged before the court, the court pointed out some shortcomings and said that the State government could enact fresh legislation after removing those shortcomings. The court did not say that the State Assembly had no legislative competence to enact such an Act,” the Minister recalled.
Following this, the DMK government enacted new legislation and sent it for the assent of the Governor, he said.
"Since the court has said that the State Assembly has the powers to enact such legislation, we wonder on what grounds the Governor has returned the Bill. After studying the reasons spelt out by the Governor, Chief Minister MK Stalin will clarify the issue. If the State Assembly adopts this Bill again and sends it to the Governor again, he must give his assent for this. As per the law, he cannot deny assent to a Bill sent to him for the second time,” the Minister clarified.
On Wednesday, the Governor returned the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gaming and Regulation of Online Games Bill, 2022 claiming that the state legislature lacks legislative competence to pass such a bill.
Meanwhile, Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) president Anbumani Ramadoss strongly condemned the Governor for returning the Bill. "If the Governor has said the State Legislature has no legislative competence to pass such a Bill, then such a statement is strongly condemnable. It belittles the Tamil Nadu Assembly."
The PMK president also said that there was no clause in the Constitution that said the State government has no legislative competence to enact such legislation.
Already, more than 10 States including Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Karnataka, Odisha, Sikkim, Nagaland, and Meghalaya have enacted legislation to ban online rummy.
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Besides, Union Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw clarified in the Lok Sabha that the State governments have legislative powers to enact legislation to ban online rummy. The Madras High Court had also put forth a similar view. "As such, how come the Governor says the State Assembly has no legislative competence to enact such a law? We suspect ulterior motives behind the Governor denying assent to the Bill," Ramadoss added.
Besides, had the Governor strongly believed that the State Assembly had no legislative competence to enact a law to ban online rummy, he should have returned the Bill on October 19 last year when it was sent for his assent, Ramadoss opined. "Why did he keep the Bill on the back burner for 142 days?" the PMK president asked while pointing out that the same Governor had given his assent to the ordinance to ban online rummy without questioning the legislative competence of the State government then.
The PMK president also pointed out that after the Madras High Court struck down the state government's legislation to ban online betting games like rummy and poker in August 2021, as many as 47 persons died by suicide. 18 people among them had ended their lives soon after the new legislation to ban online rummy was enacted, he added.
"The Governor has to take responsibility for the deaths of these 18 persons and the plight of their families," he said.
Ramadoss also sought an all-party meeting to discuss the issue.
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