Goa Youth Congress Opposes Reopening of Casinos

Can Goa’s volatile political fabric ever keep the casino sector out of drama and controversy? Seems not!

Hours after CM Pramod Sawant gave the casinos the long-awaited green signal to reopen on October 28, the state’s chief opposition party – Congress, sprang into action and dragged the issue into the limelight. Reacting to Sawant’s announcement, the Goa Youth Congress submitted a memorandum to Goa’s Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari opposing the move.

In the memorandum, Young Congress president Varad Mardolkar demanded that casinos should remain shut until the COVID-19 pandemic is under control. He pointed out that since the gaming floors in the casinos are usually packed with people and staff, reopening casinos could lead to the virus’s spread.

Calling the reopening nothing but an “open invitation” to the pandemic, Mardolkar stated – “The government should not play with the lives of common Goan people just to earn revenues.”

Despite the memorandum, most casinos of Goa reopened on Sunday. While the Big Daddy and Deltin Royale have resumed operations at their poker rooms, Casino Pride II that houses the PokerBaazi LIVE poker room remains closed.

The Youth Congress Stance

Goa’s Youth Congress chief Varad Mardolkar has in the memorandum expressed concerns that if casinos are allowed to function, there will be crowding of people and unleash a new wave of COVID-19 cases.

Underlining the issue in the memorandum, Mardolkar said, “As our state has not totally recovered from the coronavirus onslaught yet, it is highly advisable to restrict the free movement of people in large numbers to curb the spread of the virus. In such a situation, reopening of casinos in the Mandovi river will give an open invitation to the corona pandemic.”

As of November 1, Goa had reported 43,416 COVID-19 positive cases.

What the Young Congress seems to have missed is that a large number of Goans are employed in the offshore and onshore casinos operating in the coastal state. Casinos have been closed since mid-March, and though most other commercial sectors were reopened as part of Unlock 5.0, the casinos did not. This has translated into severe losses for operators and affected the finances of the employed staff as well (many of whom depend upon tips and other perks). CM Sawant’s orders to reopen the sector was a move long coming.

Goa Casinos Now Operational

Notwithstanding Congress’s opposition, the Goa government’s reopening order brought a huge sigh of relief to the struggling casino industry.

CM Sawant has mandated casinos to operate at only 50% capacity, and according to confirmations from the poker room operators, at least two offshore casinos resumed operations on November 1.

Delta Corp operated Deltin Royale reopened on November 1, and the poker room on the vessel is also operational. Similarly, Casino Big Daddy also opened the same day with the live poker action resuming at the Spartan LIVE poker room at the venue.

However, Casino Pride II and the PokerBaazi LIVE poker room onboard the vessel remain closed for the time being.

As confirmed by the poker room operators at Deltin Royale and Big Daddy, the casinos are adhering to strict safety and social distancing precautions. Since most of the casino staff had returned to their native places, operators have conveyed that it may take some time for the casinos to resume normal operations.

Likewise, live poker tournaments are also unlikely to begin anytime soon. There are still travel restrictions due to the prevailing COVID-19 situation, and even in many places with no conditions, player enthusiasm to travel remains low.