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 requiring 17 go to win versus Australia.

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

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

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

"I think India is winning, make the change," he tells his bookmaker 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 wagering on cricket matches. We can't reveal his name as what he's doing is unlawful in India.

Besides horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not allowed India. Despite that, illegal wagering distributes flourish in the country.

'Black money'

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

Without any legal avenue, punters position bets utilizing their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can wager on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest individual run scorer.

The majority of these deals include so-called "black money", which is cash not declared 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 absolutely nothing comparable here.

And offshore sports betting business are utilizing this loophole to tempt Indians. Despite the fact that there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot people have signed up accounts with overseas firms.

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

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

Require legalisation

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

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to recommend changes in the performance of India's cricket regulatory 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 two years after some gamers and team authorities were found guilty of fixing parts of the match at the request of bookies.

The panel likewise argues that legalised sports betting will bring in tax revenues for the exchequer that could amount to $2bn a year.

Even gamblers feel that legalising sports betting wagering is a move in the best direction.

"I do not mind paying some cash out my revenues, as long as I can bet publicly," states our cricket bettor.

It would also open a big organization opportunity for licensed bookmakers and worldwide online sports betting companies to set up operations in India.

And it would help restrict match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue many, by helping make transactions involved in gambling more transparent.

"If you work along with sports betting companies, you will have a really efficient technique of stamping out match repairing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering website, India Bet.

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

However, there are constraints.

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

He includes that individuals who use unaccounted money to place huge bets will never bet legally.

Approval question

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

"Although many individuals are associated with some sort of gaming - it's still a controversial problem for numerous," states our unnamed punter.

And considered that India has a federal structural - each state will have to likewise pass a different law to legalise sports betting in their territory.

"The procedure is so long and difficult 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 backed by an official panel for the first time, a minimum of a debate has fired up around a topic - which until now was considered a taboo.