Alappuzha, Sunday 29 August 2010: Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac has said that if the centre failed to take action to save the state from the Lottery threat, the state government would not hesitate to ban all lotteries, including Kerala state lotteries.

He was speaking at a function organized to mark the completion of the first phase of the EMS stadium being constructed by the Alappuzha Municipality here on Saturday night.

Kerala governments do not have the power to take action against other State lotteries. Only the Centre can do that. It has not responded to the 17 letters sent to it by the State seeking action against the illegal methods being adopted by the other State lottery operators.

The only option is to ban all lotteries including that being run by the Kerala government. We are ready to do that, but then the Congress and the UDF should be ready to bear responsibility for it,” Isaac said.

Isaac said there were no two opinions in the government about the fraudulent means being adopted by outside lottery operators. It had conducted its own investigations to detect such practices and had also taken all steps necessary to fight such operators in the highest court in the country.

(With News agency inputs)