Congress manifesto seeks to shut down all casinos in Goa

Goa politicians are out to prove they’re not all talk when they say they want the Indian state’s gambling industry banned—they now have papers to back it, too.

This week, the Congress party came out with a manifesto for the upcoming state elections. In it, the politicians vowed to shut down all casinos in the coastal state, including the floating vessels.

“Floating casinos in Goa’s river will be closed permanently,” reads the manifesto of Congress, according to the Press Trust of India. Meanwhile, “those on the shore too will be closed at a later stage,” said Goa Congress chief Luizinho Faleiro.

The first phase will involve the offshore casinos in the river Mandovi, while onshore casinos will be banned in the second phase, the chief said.