Daijiworld Media Network - Hyderabad (SP)

Hyderabad, Jul 7: Retired Karnataka Lokayukta and former Supreme Court judge, Justice N Santosh Hegde, expressed his support to legalizing prostitution. He also said that he concurs with the recommendation of the Central Law Commission to give legal sanction to betting in sports and gambling.

Speaking to a news agency here on Friday July 6, Justice Hegde said that law cannot, on its own, root out some kinds of wrong things. "If someone feels that this can be done, he or she must be living in imaginary world. Even when liquor was banned in the past, illegal production and sale of liquor continued to happen. The government did not achieve anything other than suffering loss by way of tax. Betting in sports too cannot be stopped by passing law. If it is legalized, most of the irregularities happening in the name of betting and gambling can be regulated," he asserted.

On the issue of legalizing prostitution, Justice Hegde emphatically said that there is a need to legalize this activity, duly noting that in spite of ban, prostitution has been proliferating everywhere. "It has become an industry in itself and there cannot be any town where prostitution is absent. Therefore, it should be regulated by issuing licences and legalizing the activity," he added.

At the same time, he expressed the belief that morality cannot be enforced by law and this can be done only by religion and religious leaders.

The Law Commission has said that the law banning betting and gambling has not been able to stop these activities, as this activity is going on behind the scenes, and creating black money in the bargain. It has recommended to permit betting and gambling in a controlled manner and that linking of Aadhar and PAN should be made mandatory for the same. It also has recommended levying tax on the income arising out of these activities as this will result in increased income to the government and regulating of these activities.