The government does not have any plan for now to allow operation of casino in the country under a legal framework, two senior ministers said on Tuesday.
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader made the similar remark separately when attention was drawn to a comment made by civil aviation and tourism secretary Mohibul Haque that casino operation might be allowed exclusively for the tourism sector.
Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a programme on road safety at a city hotel, the finance minister said the government considers casino as 'gambling' and it has yet to take any decision on the operation of casino in the country under a legal framework.
"It (casino operation) is unlawful," he added.
Mr Kamal, however, said the administration cannot avoid its responsibility for the expansion of illegal casino operation in the country.
In a separate programme, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader also ruled out the possibility of allowing casino operation.
"No decision has yet been taken by the government high-ups to allow casino operation under a legal framework," he said.
Mr Quader, also the general secretary of the Awami League, said the tourism ministry may have their opinion on the issue, but the government high-ups have not taken any decision on it.
Earlier in the day, civil aviation and tourism secretary Mohibul Haque made the comment on casino facilities in response to a query as to whether the operation of night clubs and casinos would be allowed for foreign tourists.
"If we set up exclusive tourist zones, there is no problem to allow various facilities which are available in other Muslim countries," he said at a press conference on the occasion of World Tourism Day 2019.
"We want to create facilities for the tourists where they will enter by showing passports. I fully support the ongoing drive against the illegal casinos in Dhaka," he added.
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