Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting wagering 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 requiring 17 runs to win versus Australia.

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

He has actually made more than 10 contact the last thirty minutes - not to go over the match but to keep revising his bet.

Five minutes previously his cash was on Australia, however now as the Indian batsman prepares yourself to deal with the last over he's changed 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 to life, as India wins the match in a nail-biting surface.

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

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

Other than horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not enabled in India. Despite that, illegal sports betting distributes grow in the country.

'Black cash'

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

With no legal avenue, punters put bets using their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can bank on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the highest private run scorer.

Most of these deals include so-called "black cash", which is cash not stated to the taxman.

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any type of sports betting in India, but unlike in the US which has a law restricting internet gaming, there is absolutely nothing comparable here.

And overseas sports betting companies are using this loophole to entice Indians. Although there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot individuals have signed up accounts with offshore companies.

"Legally you can escape [with this], as the law is unclear for online gaming," states Mumbai- based lawyer HP Ranina.

But regardless of this, it is "offline sports betting", done through call which dominate the marketplace.

Require legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has grown after a panel designated by India's Supreme Court proposed the concept, saying it would help clamp down on corruption in the country's preferred sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was established to recommend changes 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 emerged.

Two franchises have been prohibited for 2 years after some gamers and group officials were condemned of repairing parts of the match at the behest of bookmakers.

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

Even bettors feel that legalising sports betting is a move in the ideal instructions.

"I don't mind paying some money out my profits, as long as I can gamble publicly," says our cricket gambler.

It would also open a huge company chance for licensed bookmakers and international online wagering business to establish operations in India.

And it would assist limit match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue numerous, by assisting make transactions involved in sports betting more transparent.

"If you work along with wagering companies, you will have an extremely reliable method of stamping out match fixing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting site, India Bet.

But numerous likewise believe, that the taxes imposed on the gambler and the bookmaker will have to be sensible to make it attractive enough for them to bet lawfully.

However, there are restrictions.

"Definitely there will be unlawful wagering since (some) people wouldn't desire to leave an audit path by entering the white market," states Mr Oborne.

He includes that people who utilize unaccounted cash to position big bets will never ever gamble legally.

Approval question

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

"Even though many individuals are associated with some sort of gaming - it's still a questionable concern for lots of," states our unnamed punter.

And provided that India has a federal structural - each state will have to also pass a separate law to legalise sports betting gambling in their territory.

"The procedure is so long and tricky that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative about this coming true anytime quickly."

Yet with the concept having been backed by an official panel for the first time, at least an argument has ignited around a subject - which till now was thought about a taboo.