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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 go to win versus Australia.

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

He has made more than 10 calls in the last 30 minutes - not to go over the match however to keep revising his bet.

Five minutes earlier his cash was on Australia, but now as the Indian batsman gets ready to deal with the last over he's altered his mind.

"I think India is winning, make the modification," he informs his bookmaker on the phone.

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

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

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

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

'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 wager on anything related to the cricket match, from who is winning to the highest specific run scorer.

The majority of these transactions involve "black cash", which is money not stated to the taxman.

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

And overseas sports betting business are utilizing this loophole to lure Indians. Although there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot people have actually 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 lawyer HP Ranina.

But despite this, it is "offline sports betting", done through telephone call which control the market.

Calls for legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has actually grown after a panel appointed by India's Supreme Court proposed the idea, stating it would assist clamp down on corruption in the nation's favourite 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 sports betting scandal came to light.

Two franchises have actually been prohibited for 2 years after some gamers and group authorities were condemned of fixing parts of the match at the request of bookies.

The panel likewise argues that legalised wagering will bring in tax revenues for the exchequer that could total up to $2bn a year.

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

"I do not mind paying some cash out my profits, as long as I can gamble openly," states our cricket gambler.

It would also open a huge service opportunity for licensed bookies and global online sports betting business to establish operations in India.

And it would help restrict match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue lots of, by helping make deals involved in sports betting more transparent.

"If you work alongside wagering companies, you will have a really efficient method of marking out match repairing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting site, India Bet.

But numerous likewise believe, that the taxes imposed on the bettor and the bookmaker will have to be reasonable to make it appealing enough for them to bet legally.

However, there are constraints.

"Definitely there will be illegal wagering due to the fact that (some) individuals wouldn't wish to leave an audit path by getting in the white market," says Mr Oborne.

He adds that people who utilize unaccounted money to position huge bets will never ever gamble lawfully.

Approval question

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

"Even however lots of people are associated with some sort of sports betting - it's still a controversial problem for many," says our unnamed punter.

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

"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 soon."

Yet with the idea having been endorsed by an official panel for the very first time, a minimum of an argument has sparked around a subject - which till now was thought about a taboo.

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