Shimla, Aug. 27 -- Former Union cabinet minister and MP from Hamirpur Anurag Thakur has written to chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu urging the immediate withdrawal of the tender issued by the finance department for the reintroduction of state-run lotteries in the state.

Referring to e-tender for appointing a sole selling agent for an online and offline lottery system, Anurag urged the state government to abandon the proposal in its entirety in the interest of the people of Himachal.

Anurag in his letter highlighted the rare political consensus that has kept lotteries banned in Himachal for more than two decades. He recalled that the government of Prem Kumar Dhumal imposed the ban in 1999 after witnessing its devastating impact on e...