Goa BJP waters down stance on offshore casinos

Panaji - The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Thursday watered down its stance on offshore casinos in Goa, saying it merely wanted them to be relocated out of sight in the Arabian Sea.

Leader of opposition Manohar Parrikar told reporters at the party headquarters that the six operational offshore casinos presently anchored in the Mandovi river would be moved out to the sea if the party is

elected to power in the March 3 assembly polls.

"We are very clear. There will be regularization of the casinos. They can not block the river and create a nuisance like they are creating now. We will ask them to move out into the sea," Parrikar said.

Parrikar also said that the entry of locals could also be banned in the casinos.

"The government has already given them licences. How can we do it? You tell me under which rule it can be done," said Parrikar, when asked about the party's earlier stated position that the offshore casino

policy would be scrapped if they came to power.

Goa’s six offshore casinos currently operate in the Mandovi river near Panaji. Three years ago, the BJP had started an agitation demanding that offshore casinos be removed from Goa, because they were a

bad influence on the local population.