Merely shifting some Casinos them from the Panaji side of River Mandovi across to Verem is an eyewash. It is not a solution as the Casinos need to be driven out of Goa to save our now tarnished State from further ruin.
While as the Leader of the Opposition Manohar Parrikar had vociferously branded Casinos as a “social evil” and had called them “dens of vice”. While spearheading that agitation against Casinos, Manohar Parrikar had vowed to make sure that all Casinos were thrown out of Goa if the BJP came to power. But in a dramatic U turn in March 2012 after coming to Power, the BJP has gone all out to promote, shield and increase the number of Casinos. And now Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has publicly stated that those “dens of vice” and that the “social evil” is now an integral and vital part of the Tourism trade
Ironically the RSS which sets and gears the agenda for the BJP is known to be against gambling but their silence on Casinos is deafening. The BJP has fallen in passionate love with the Casino brigade who are now getting the government’s abundant patronage and overwhelming support. For the very dismal number of jobs created for Goans, the overall damage that is being inflicted on the State by Casinos is irreversible. While the BJP is feasting and making merry with the abundant moolah flowing from the Casinos, Goa has sadly become the country’s gambling hub with the allied vices of Prostitution and the Narcotics trade also flourishing by the day while the Crime rate is on a steep rise. Needless to state Goa is now also a drowning destination. So, for Goa to remain afloat the Casinos must sink. And faster it happens it would be better for Goa and Goans.
