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Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting wagering in India
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Published

5 February 2016

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By Sameer Hashmi

Mumbai Business press reporter

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

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

He has made more than 10 employ the last 30 minutes - not to discuss the match but to keep revising his bet.

Five minutes previously his cash was on Australia, today as the Indian batsman prepares to deal with 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 on his prediction 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 sports betting on cricket matches. We can't expose his name as what he's doing is prohibited in India.

Other than horse racing, sports betting wagering of any kind is not enabled in India. Despite that, unlawful sports betting distributes flourish in the country.

'Black money'

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

With no legal opportunity, punters put bets utilizing their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can wager on anything related to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest private run scorer.

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

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any kind of sports betting in India, however unlike in the US which has a law prohibiting internet sports betting, there is nothing similar here.
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And overseas sports betting companies are using this loophole to entice Indians. Despite the fact that there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot individuals have signed up accounts with overseas firms.

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

But despite this, it is "offline gaming", done through phone calls which control the marketplace.

Calls for legalisation

The clamour to legalise sports betting in cricket has actually grown after a panel appointed by India's Supreme Court proposed the concept, it would assist clamp down on corruption in the nation's preferred sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to suggest 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 actually been banned for two years after some players and team authorities were found guilty of fixing parts of the match at the behest of bookies.

The panel also argues that legalised wagering will bring in tax profits for the exchequer that could amount to $2bn a year.

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

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

It would also open a big service opportunity for licensed bookmakers and global online sports betting companies to establish operations in India.

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

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

But many also think, that the taxes imposed on the bettor and the bookie will have to be sensible to make it attractive enough for them to gamble lawfully.

However, there are constraints.

"Definitely there will be unlawful sports betting due to the fact that (some) individuals would not wish to leave an audit trail by getting in the white market," says Mr Oborne.

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

Approval question

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

"Although lots of people are included in some sort of gaming - it's still a questionable issue for numerous," says our unnamed punter.

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

"The process is so long and challenging 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 a dispute has actually sparked around a topic - which previously was thought about a taboo.