Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting in India

Published

5 February 2016

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By Sameer Hashmi

Mumbai Business reporter

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

In his two-bedroom house located in main Mumbai, a middle-aged male is enjoying the video game, nervously. He's sitting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his smart phone glued to his best hand.

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

Five minutes earlier his money was on Australia, however now as the Indian batsman prepares yourself to deal with the last over he's changed his mind.

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

And a few minutes later his prediction comes real, as India wins the match in a nail-biting finish.

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

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

Besides horse racing, sports betting wagering of any kind is not enabled in India. Despite that, unlawful 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 sports betting money is directed towards cricket.

Without any legal opportunity, punters place 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 greatest specific run scorer.

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

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any kind of gaming in India, however unlike in the US which has a law restricting web gaming, there is nothing comparable here.

And offshore wagering business are using this loophole to lure Indians. Even though there are no online sports betting 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 ambiguous for online sports betting," says Mumbai- based legal representative HP Ranina.

But in spite of this, it is "offline sports betting", done through call which control the market.

Require legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has actually grown after a panel selected by India's Supreme Court proposed the idea, saying it would assist clamp down on corruption in the nation's favourite sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to suggest changes in the performance of India's cricket regulative body, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), after the 2013 Indian Premier League sports betting scandal came to light.

Two franchises have been banned for two years after some gamers and team officials were found guilty of repairing parts of the match at the wish of bookmakers.

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

Even bettors feel that legalising sports betting wagering is a relocation in the right direction.

"I do not mind paying some cash out my profits, as long as I can bet publicly," says our cricket gambler.

It would likewise open a substantial service chance for certified bookies and international online sports betting business to establish operations in India.

And it would help limit match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue numerous, by assisting make transactions associated with sports betting more transparent.

"If you work along with wagering business, you will have a very reliable technique of stamping out match fixing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting website, India Bet.

But many also believe, that the taxes imposed on the gambler and the bookmaker will need to be reasonable to make it attractive enough for them to bet lawfully.

However, there are restrictions.

"Definitely there will be prohibited sports betting due to the fact that (some) individuals would not desire to leave an audit trail by going into the white market," states Mr Oborne.

He adds that individuals who utilize unaccounted money to put huge bets will never gamble lawfully.

Approval concern

For sports betting to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be required to create a brand-new law, and politically this will be a difficult concept to sell.

"Although many individuals are involved in some sort of gambling - it's still a questionable concern for lots of," says our unnamed punter.

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

"The process is so long and difficult that it will take years," says Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative about this coming true anytime soon."

Yet with the idea having actually been backed by an official panel for the first time, at least a debate has actually sparked around a topic - which until now was thought about a taboo.