Union minister Nitin Gadkari gets another threat call at official residence in Delhi
New Delhi, May 16: An unidentified man made a threatening call on the landline number of Union minister Nitin Gadkari's official residence on Motilal Nehru road here, police said on Tuesday.
The call was received by a staff of Gadkari's office Monday night.
The caller did not share his details and demanded to speak to the minister and threaten him, a senior police officer said.
"The caller spoke in Hindi and said 'mujhe mantri ji se baat karni hai, unhe threaten karna hai' (I want to talk to the minister and want to threaten him), and disconnected the call," he said.
The minister's office reported the matter to Delhi Police which is now investigating the matter.
"All call records details are being analysed. The accused had called on the landline number so we are trying to trace the number to get to the culprit. An enquiry is underway," the officer added.
Notably, the minister's office in Nagpur had received such threat calls on two separate occasions earlier this year.
A team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) had gone to Nagpur on May 9 to conduct a probe into the matter. The calls were allegedly made by a murder convict, Jayesh Pujari alias Kantha, who was arrested from a jail in Belagavi, Karnataka, and booked under the anti-terror law UAPA, police had said.
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Blanket ban on online real money gaming will kill jobs, revenue, innovation: Minister Priyank Kharge
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka IT and Biotechnology Minister Priyank Kharge on Wednesday criticised the Centre's decision to impose a blanket ban on online real money gaming (RMG), calling it "another masterstroke by Modi Sarkar in bad policy making."
Kharge, son of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, said the decision would hit state revenues, jobs and investments.
"India earns Rs 20,000 crore annually from GST and income tax via online RMG. The ban means states lose this revenue stream," he said in a post on 'X'.
The minister noted that over 2,000 gaming startups and more than two lakh jobs in IT, AI and design would be at risk.
"A ban kills India's gaming talent pool and pushes entrepreneurs abroad," Kharge said, adding that Rs 23,000 crore of foreign direct investment in the last five years could dry up and about Rs 7,000 crore spent annually on ads, data centres, sponsorships and cyber security would vanish overnight.
Warning of unintended consequences, the minister said, "Bans don't stop addiction or suicides. Instead, they push users to unregulated offshore platforms worth Rs 8.2 lakh crore annually where government has no control at all.
"Security risks: Unregulated sites ensure money laundering, terror financing, data theft. Even FATF and Rashtriya Raksha University warn against such risks."
Noting that the Supreme Court is still deciding whether the Centre or states have the power to regulate, Kharge questioned "Why the rush to ban now?"
He said prohibition is not the solution and called for regulating skill-based platforms, enforcing IT Rules, 2021, and whitelisting legitimate operators.
"A well-balanced regulation will ensure jobs, revenue, safer users, national security and global innovation," he said, cautioning that "a blanket ban will not only lead to revenue loss, but will give rise to illegal markets that might threaten national security and, of course, there will be a huge innovation setback. Regulation is the way forward."
The proposed promotion and regulation of online gaming bill, cleared by the Union Cabinet on Tuesday, prohibits online money gaming or its ads, and prescribes imprisonment or fine, or both, for those offering or advertising them, as it seeks to differentiate such games from eSports or online social games, according to a source.
At the same time, the bill calls for promotion of eSports and online social games, the source said, adding that it acknowledges that formal recognition of eSports will enable India to tune into global competitive gaming landscape, spur innovation, create opportunities for Indian startup ecosystem and make the country a global magnate for game development.
The bill proposes that any person offering online money gaming service in violation of the stipulated provisions will face imprisonment of up to three years or a fine that may extend to Rs 1 crore, or both.
The provisions also stipulate imprisonment of up to two years and or a fine of up to Rs 50 lakh, or both, for those indulging in advertisements in contravention of rules. Also, those engaging in any transaction or authorisation of funds will be liable for up to three years imprisonment, or a fine up to Rs 1 crore or both, according to the source.
