Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting wagering 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 runs to win against Australia.

In his two-bedroom home situated in central Mumbai, a middle-aged man is seeing 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 previously his cash was on Australia, today as the Indian batsman prepares yourself to deal with the last over he's altered his mind.

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

And a few minutes later on his forecast comes to life, as India wins the match in a nail-biting finish.

"I have actually 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 illegal in India.

Aside from horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not enabled in India. Despite that, illegal sports betting distributes thrive in the nation.

'Black cash'

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

With no legal avenue, punters position bets using their phones by making calls to bookmakers. Gamblers can bank on anything related to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest private run scorer.

Most of these transactions include so-called "black cash", which is money not declared to the taxman.
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The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any sort of sports betting in India, however unlike in the US which has a law prohibiting web sports betting, there is absolutely nothing comparable here.
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And offshore sports betting business are utilizing this loophole to draw Indians. Even though there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot people have registered accounts with offshore companies.

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

But in spite of 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 grown after a panel designated by India's Supreme Court proposed the concept, saying it would help secure down on corruption in the nation's preferred sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was established 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 wagering scandal came to light.

Two franchises have been banned for two years after some players and team officials were discovered guilty of repairing parts of the match at the behest of bookies.

The panel likewise argues that legalised wagering will bring in tax incomes for the exchequer that could total up to $2bn a year.
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Even that legalising sports betting is a move in the ideal instructions.

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

It would likewise open a substantial service opportunity for certified bookies and worldwide online wagering business to establish operations in India.
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And it would help restrict 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 approach of stamping out match fixing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering website, India Bet.
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But lots of also believe, that the taxes levied on the bettor and the bookmaker will need to be reasonable to make it appealing enough for them to gamble legally.

However, there are constraints.

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

He includes that individuals who use unaccounted money to position big bets will never ever gamble legally.

Approval question

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

"Despite the fact that many individuals are involved in some sort of gambling - it's still a questionable problem for many," states our unnamed punter.

And given that India has a federal structural - each state will need to likewise pass a separate law to legalise sports betting gambling in their territory.

"The process is so long and tricky that it will take years," says Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative about this ending up being a reality anytime quickly."

Yet with the concept having actually been endorsed by a main panel for the very first time, a minimum of a dispute has sparked around a topic - which till now was thought about a taboo.