The State Legislative Assembly on Monday passed the Odisha Jan Vishwas Bill, 2025 after a marathon four-hour debate. The bill amends 16 laws across nine departments and completely removes imprisonment provisions under the Odisha Gambling Prevention Act, 1955, replacing them with monetary penalties ranging from ₹5,000 to ₹75,000.
Previously, gambling carried a mandatory jail term of 1 to 6 months. With the new amendment, offenders can now walk free by paying fines, effectively decriminalising the activity for first-time and minor violations.
Industries & SDTE Minister Sampad Chandra Swain defended the bill, stating it was prepared after six months of extensive consultation and would significantly improve “Ease of Doing Business” and “Ease of Living” in the state. He claimed nine other states have already implemented similar provisions and insisted there was no need to refer the bill to a select committee.
The opposition BJD and Congress launched a scathing attack, terming it a “Jan Avishwas” (public distrust) bill that favours big corporations and promotes gambling and illicit liquor trade.
Senior BJD leader Ranendra Pratap Swain alleged the bill was designed to sell Odisha’s land, forest and water resources to corporate giants like Adani and Ambani at throwaway prices. Congress MLA CS Raazen Ekka accused the government of encouraging gambling, saying, “Villages are already witnessing fights over gambling; this will only worsen the situation.”
BJD’s Dhruba Charan Sahoo demanded a public referendum while Ganeswar Behera questioned the urgency behind bringing an ordinance on November 3, just weeks before the winter session.
Ruling BJP legislators strongly backed the bill, with Irasis Acharya pointing out that earlier jail terms were rarely enforced and nominal fines of ₹10–50 were ineffective. Babu Singh mocked the opposition for opposing every government move by simply adding “a” (avishwas) to every bill name.
In his reply, Minister Swain clarified that serious offences affecting public health, environment and deliberate fraud would still attract criminal prosecution and imprisonment. Minor and technical violations have been converted into compoundable offences with graded fines.
The bill aligns state laws with the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and follows the Centre’s Jan Vishwas framework introduced in 2023.
