The unsavoury story of fraud and corruption in Nagaland's state lotteries, now confirmed by a special audit ordered by the Comptroller and Auditor General is sickening. Over 10,000 crore rupees were stolen from ordinary gullible citizens who wanted to play an honest numbers game. The game was organised by the state — and it was a fraud. It was a means by which state personnel, in league with a 'sole-selling distributor', stole the money of the citizenry. Such misdemeanour should not escape punishment. Also, the right of the state to control gambling should be taken away. When it is itself immoral, the state has no business imposing its puritanical morality upon us. We all have the right to take risks with what we own — our own, hard-earned money. In truth, this is the essence of capitalism, and it is no coincidence that Indian business families gamble on Diwali to please the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi. Wealth comes to those who take successful risks with their money. Today, with a ban on legal gambling, there are no casinos in India; and, during the recent World Cup Cricket, thousands of crores worth of illegal gambling took place. We would much rather prefer freedom. The clinching argument is that this is a democratic country, and the essence of democracy is that each citizen is capable

of ruling himself, and therefore empowered to elect his rulers. These rulers never question 'the wisdom of the voter' at election time. So what gives them the right to assume their voters will not know how to handle freedom?

Gambling is widespread in India — but it is illegal. Satta, matka, teer...the list is long, and everything is controlled by criminals. We would much rather prefer honest businessmen. If they cheat, they get blacklisted, their reputations suffer, and they eventually lose. When there is competition amongst various private betting outlets, there is more chance of honest players emerging. Further, the Internet is upon us, and there are casinos on the net where punters can take a sporting chance. There is no need to travel to Kathmandu today to play roulette: it can be done from one's computer. India can build an honest gambling industry, preferable to kleptocrats playing moral police.

The Manipur government cites 'unprecedented increase in the commission of crimes' for continuing the Act but official reluctance to divulge crime figures makes the argument suspect. What is bound to excite curiosity is that the law and order situation should deteriorate so rapidly after the PM's visit on May 21. Pressure has been mounting on the Nipamacha Singh government to withdraw troops following the disappearance in February 1998 of a 15-year-old schoolboy allegedly "arrested" by the Army. In the five-month stand-off by the All Manipur Students Union, government vehicles and property worth more than a crore of rupees were destroyed. The AMSU's demand for a state human rights commission, removal of Army posts from civilian areas and an end to harassment during search operations have been accepted. But these are temporary measures. The Supreme Court order makes it clear

that the Army should be used for 'a limited duration and

there should be a periodic review before the expiry of six months'. Since nearly two decades of the civilian authorities' dependence on the Army has begun to hurt local sentiments, the sooner they are replaced by a modern and professional police force the better. Delhi has not been slow in releasing funds for the purpose. With the situation in Kargil becoming increasingly delicate, these troops should be freed to defend the country's border.