Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting in India

Published

5 February 2016

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By Sameer Hashmi

Mumbai Business press reporter

It is the last over of the cricket match, with India needing 17 runs to win versus Australia.

In his two-bedroom house located in central Mumbai, a middle-aged man is seeing the video game, nervously. He's sitting on the edge of his grey colour sofa with his cellphone glued to his right-hand man.

He has actually made more than 10 contact the last 30 minutes - not to talk about the match however to keep revising his bet.

Five minutes previously his cash was on Australia, today as the Indian batsman prepares yourself to face the last over he's altered his mind.

"I think India is winning, make the change," he informs his bookie on the phone.

And a couple of minutes later on his forecast comes true, as India wins the match in a nail-biting finish.

"I have made $200 today," he says with a childlike glee.

For more than 3 decades he's been banking on cricket matches. We can't expose his name as what he's doing is illegal in India.

Other than horse racing, sports betting wagering of any kind is not enabled in India. Despite that, prohibited wagering syndicates prosper in the nation.

'Black cash'

According to the Doha-based International Centre for sports betting Security, India's prohibited sports betting market is worth some $150bn a year. And much of that gambling cash is directed towards cricket.

Without any legal avenue, punters put bets using their phones by making calls to bookmakers. Gamblers can bank on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest specific run scorer.

The majority of these transactions include so-called "black cash", which is money not stated to the taxman.

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any sort of gaming in India, however unlike in the US which has a law prohibiting internet sports betting, there is nothing similar here.

And overseas wagering companies are utilizing this loophole to entice Indians. Even though there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot people have signed up accounts with offshore companies.

"Legally you can get away [with this], as the law is ambiguous for online sports betting," states Mumbai- based attorney HP Ranina.

But in spite of this, it is "offline gaming", done through phone calls which control the marketplace.

Calls for legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has grown after a panel appointed by India's Supreme Court proposed the idea, stating it would assist secure down on corruption in the country's preferred sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to recommend modifications in the functioning of India's cricket regulative body, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), after the 2013 Indian Premier League wagering scandal came to light.

Two franchises have actually been prohibited for 2 years after some players and group authorities were condemned of repairing parts of the match at the wish of bookies.

The panel also argues that legalised sports betting will bring in tax profits for the exchequer that might amount to $2bn a year.

Even gamblers feel that legalising sports betting wagering is a relocation in the ideal instructions.

"I do not mind paying some money out my revenues, as long as I can gamble openly," says our cricket gambler.

It would also open a substantial company chance for certified bookies and global online wagering business to establish operations in India.

And it would help limit match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue many, by helping make deals included in gambling more transparent.

"If you work alongside wagering companies, you will have a really reliable method of stamping out match fixing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting website, India Bet.

But numerous likewise think, that the taxes imposed on the bettor and the bookmaker will need to be reasonable to make it attractive enough for them to gamble lawfully.

However, there are constraints.

"Definitely there will be illegal sports betting because (some) individuals wouldn't wish to leave an audit path by entering the white market," says Mr Oborne.

He adds that individuals who use unaccounted money to position big bets will never ever bet lawfully.

Approval question

For sports betting gambling to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be required to produce a brand-new law, and politically this will be a hard concept to offer.

"Despite the fact that lots of people are involved in some sort of gaming - it's still a controversial issue for lots of," states our unnamed punter.

And considered that India has a federal structural - each state will need to also pass a different law to legalise sports betting gambling in their area.

"The process is so long and difficult that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are cynical about this becoming a truth anytime quickly."

Yet with the concept having been backed by an official panel for the very first time, at least a debate has actually fired up around a topic - which previously was considered a taboo.