Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting wagering in India
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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 against Australia.

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

He has made more than 10 hire the last 30 minutes - not to talk about the match but to keep modifying his bet.

Five minutes earlier his cash was on Australia, now as the Indian batsman prepares to face 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 few minutes later his prediction comes to life, as India wins the match in a nail-biting surface.

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

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

Aside from horse racing, sports betting wagering of any kind is not allowed India. Despite that, prohibited 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 wagering market is worth some $150bn a year. And much of that gambling money is directed towards cricket.

Without any legal opportunity, punters position 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 individual run scorer.

Most of these transactions include so-called "black money", which is money not declared to the taxman.

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any kind of sports betting in India, but unlike in the US which has a law forbiding internet sports betting, there is nothing similar here.

And overseas sports betting business are utilizing this loophole to lure Indians. Even though there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot individuals have actually signed up accounts with offshore companies.

"Legally you can get away [with this], as the law is unclear for online sports betting," states lawyer HP Ranina.

But despite this, it is "offline gambling", done through telephone call which control the marketplace.

Calls for 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 help clamp down on corruption in the country's preferred 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 emerged.

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

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

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

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

It would likewise open a substantial service opportunity for licensed bookies and global online sports betting companies to establish operations in India.

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

"If you work along with sports betting business, you will have an extremely efficient method of marking out match repairing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting website, India Bet.

But lots of likewise 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 constraints.

"Definitely there will be illegal wagering due to the fact that (some) individuals would not want to leave an audit trail by entering the white market," states Mr Oborne.

He adds that individuals who utilize unaccounted cash to position big bets will never ever bet lawfully.

Approval concern

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

"Despite the fact that many people are included in some sort of sports betting - it's still a questionable concern for many," says our unnamed punter.

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

"The process 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 actually been endorsed by an official panel for the very first time, a minimum of an argument has fired up around a subject - which previously was considered a taboo.
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