Citing unspecified “inside sources”, Asia Gaming Brief has reported that Indian conglomerate Essel Group is planning to finally open a new offshore casino in Goa christened as the Casino Maharaja.

Mumbai-based Essel Group was formerly chaired by media entrepreneur Subhash Chandra and first announced plans to launch south Asia’s largest floating casino for the small Indian state in 2009. However, the plan has been plagued by licensing issues, which could now be helped after Chandra was elected in August as an independent candidate from Haryana to the upper house of the Indian parliament, which is known as the Rajya Sabha.

Essel Group currently operates government lotteries in a number of Indian states under its Playwin brand and recently premiered its PokerNation.com online poker domain. Should the Casino Maharaja be launched, it would be the sixth floating casino in Goa alongside the Deltin Royale, Deltin Jaqk and the Deltin Caravela from Delta Corporation Limited and Pride Group’s Casino Pride and Casino Carnival.